Kinetics of the boron plus nitrogen reaction

The reaction kinetics between boron and nitrogen have been examined in the temperature range of 1479 to 1823 K, using amorphous (probably α-phase) boron and β-rhombohedral boron. The evidence indicates the reaction mechanism is most likely topochemical yielding BN with α-B as the starting material. When β-B is the starting material, a two-step reaction series occurs with a homogeneous reaction to form B6N followed by a topochemical reaction to yield BN