The electronic and reactivity properties of carbon doped (C-doped) boron nitride nanoribbons (BNNRs) as a function of the carbon concentration were investigated in the framework of the density functional theory within the generalized gradient approximation. We found that the main routes to stabilize energetically the C-doped BNNRs involve substituting boron atoms near the edges. However, the effect of doping on the electronic properties depends of the sublattice where the C atoms are located; for instance, negative doping (partial occupations of electronic states) is found replacing B atoms, whereas positive doping (partial inoccupation of electronic states) is found when replacing N atoms with respect to the pristine BNNRs. Independently of the even or odd number of dopants of the C-doped BNNRs studied in this work, the solutions of the Kohn Sham equations suggest that the most stable solution is the magnetic one. The reactivity of the C-doped BNNRs is inferred from results of the dual descriptor, and it turns out that the main electrophilic sites are located near the dopants along the C-doped BNNRs. The reactivity of these nanostructures is tested by calculating the interaction energy between undesirable organosulfur compounds present in oil fuels on the C-doped BNNRs, finding that organosulfur compounds prefer to interact over nanosurfaces with dopants substituted on the B sublattice of the C-doped BNNRs. Most importantly, the selective C doping on the BNNRs offers the opportunity to tune the properties of the BNNRs to fit novel technological applications.
The modifications of the electronic properties on carbon-doped boron nitride nanoribbons (BNNRs) as a response to the adsorption of different nitro species were investigated in the framework of the density functional theory within the generalized gradient approximation. Calculations were performed using the SIESTA code. We found that the main response involved tuning the original magnetic behavior to a non-magnetic system when the molecule was chemisorbed on the carbon-doped BNNR. It was also revealed that some species could be dissociated through the adsorption process. Furthermore, the nitro species preferred to interact over nanosurfaces where dopants substituted the B sublattice of the carbon-doped BNNRs. Most importantly, the switch on the magnetic behavior offers the opportunity to apply these systems to fit novel technological applications.
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