ISSN print edition: 0366-6352 ISSN electronic edition: 1336-9075 Registr. No.: MK SR 9/7 Published monthly

Low-temperature synthesis of graphene derivatives: mechanism and characterization

Peetam Mandal and Mitali Saha

National Institute of Technology Agartala, Agartala, India

E-mail: mitalichem71@gmail.com

Abstract: In this paper, we have reported the synthesis of graphene oxide (GO) and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) from non-graphitic organic compounds in contrast to the earlier reported graphite powder. The development of graphitic planes was achieved via two alternate ways. In the first case, GO was prepared from two different compounds viz. organic acids and carbohydrates which were further reduced to rGO using thiourea in aqueous medium. Second, thiourea was added in situ which resulted in the direct conversion of dextrose to graphene, bypassing the formation of GO. The controlled heating played an important role to prepare GO without using additional oxidizing agents and to facilitate condensation and aromatization of non-graphitic precursors. The results suggested that any carbohydrate or organic acid containing hydroxyl groups and carbon atom (≥ 4) favored the development of graphitic planes via inter- and intramolecular linkages. The direct conversion of dextrose to graphene was confirmed by the peak at around 2θ of 25° indicating the formation of 002 plane due to stacking of layers of graphene. The HRTEM micrographs showed distinct lattice fringes with d-spacing of 3.25 Å.

Keywords: Graphene ; Carbohydrates ; Organic acids ; Chemistry ; Mechanism 

Full paper is available at www.springerlink.com.

DOI: 10.1007/s11696-019-00756-3

Chemical Papers 73 (8) 1997–2006 (2019)