An iron-based green approach to 1-h production of single-layer graphene oxide.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 25607686.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/ncomms6716 and PMC identifier 4354147.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
As a reliable and scalable precursor of graphene, graphene oxide (GO) is of great importance. However, the environmentally hazardous heavy metals and poisonous gases, explosion risk and long reaction times involved in the current synthesis methods of GO increase the production costs and hinder its real applications. Here we report an iron-based green strategy for the production of single-layer GO in 1 h. Using the strong oxidant K2FeO4, our approach not only avoids the introduction of polluting heavy metals and toxic gases in preparation and products but also enables the recycling of sulphuric acid, eliminating pollution. Our dried GO powder is highly soluble in water, in which it forms liquid crystals capable of being processed into macroscopic graphene fibres, films and aerogels. This green, safe, highly efficient and ultralow-cost approach paves the way to large-scale commercial applications of graphene.