Journal article
Gram-scale bottom-up flash graphene synthesis
Nature (London), Vol.577(7792), pp.647-651
01/30/2020
DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-1938-0
PMID: 31988511
Abstract
Most bulk-scale graphene is produced by a top-down approach, exfoliating graphite, which often requires large amounts of solvent with high-energy mixing, shearing, sonication or electrochemical treatment(1-3). Although chemical oxidation of graphite to graphene oxide promotes exfoliation, it requires harsh oxidants and leaves the graphene with a defective perforated structure after the subsequent reduction step(3,4). Bottom-up synthesis of high-quality graphene is often restricted to ultrasmall amounts if performed by chemical vapour deposition or advanced synthetic organic methods, or it provides a defect-ridden structure if carried out in bulk solution(4-6). Here we show that flash Joule heating of inexpensive carbon sources-such as coal, petroleum coke, biochar, carbon black, discarded food, rubber tyres and mixed plastic waste-can afford gram-scale quantities of graphene in less than one second. The product, named flash graphene (FG) after the process used to produce it, shows turbostratic arrangement (that is, little order) between the stacked graphene layers. FG synthesis uses no furnace and no solvents or reactive gases. Yields depend on the carbon content of the source; when using a high-carbon source, such as carbon black, anthracitic coal or calcined coke, yields can range from 80 to 90 per cent with carbon purity greater than 99 per cent. No purification steps are necessary. Raman spectroscopy analysis shows a low-intensity or absent D band for FG, indicating that FG has among the lowest defect concentrations reported so far for graphene, and confirms the turbostratic stacking of FG, which is clearly distinguished from turbostratic graphite. The disordered orientation of FG layers facilitates its rapid exfoliation upon mixing during composite formation. The electric energy cost for FG synthesis is only about 7.2 kilojoules per gram, which could render FG suitable for use in bulk composites of plastic, metals, plywood, concrete and other building materials.
Flash Joule heating of inexpensive carbon sources is used to produce gram-scale quantities of high-quality graphene in under a second, without the need for a furnace, solvents or reactive gases.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Gram-scale bottom-up flash graphene synthesis
- Creators
- Duy X. Luong - Rice UniversityKsenia V. Bets - Rice UniversityWala Ali Algozeeb - Rice UniversityMichael G. Stanford - Rice UniversityCarter Kittrell - Rice UniversityWeiyin Chen - Rice UniversityRodrigo V. Salvatierra - University of HoustonMuqing Ren - Rice UniversityEmily A. McHugh - Rice UniversityPaul A. Advincula - Rice UniversityZhe Wang - University of Iowa, Chemical and Biochemical EngineeringMahesh Bhatt - C Crete Technol, Stafford, TX 77477 USAHua Guo - Rice UniversityVladimir Mancevski - Rice UniversityRouzbeh Shahsavari - C Crete Technol, Stafford, TX 77477 USABoris I. Yakobson - Rice UniversityJames M. Tour - Rice University
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Nature (London), Vol.577(7792), pp.647-651
- Publisher
- Springer Nature
- DOI
- 10.1038/s41586-020-1938-0
- PMID
- 31988511
- ISSN
- 0028-0836
- eISSN
- 1476-4687
- Number of pages
- 5
- Grant note
- 1709051 / NSF-DMR; National Science Foundation (NSF) CBET-1605848 / National Science Foundation (NSF) FA9550-19-1-0296 / US Air Force Office of Scientific Research; United States Department of Defense; Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR)
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 01/30/2020
- Academic Unit
- Chemical and Biochemical Engineering
- Record Identifier
- 9984696146302771
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