The Impact of Sodium Perylene-3, 4, 9, 10-Tetracarboxylate Surfactant Concentration on the Yield of Liquid Phase Exfoliated Graphene Sheets

Abstract

The graphene sheets were aqueous processed via simple method liquid phase exfoliation. Sodium perylene-3, 4, 9, 10-tetracarboxylate (NaPTCA) were used as surfactant to assist the exfoliation process. The purpose of this research is to investigate the impact of NaPTCA concentration on the yield of liquid phase exfoliation of graphite to graphene sheets. The degree of exfoliation was found to be greatly influenced upon the concentration of NaPTCA surfactant. 1.0 mgmL-1 was identified as the optimal NaPTCA concentration as the graphene produced had a distinct x-ray diffraction crystallinity, scanning electron microscopic image features, high concentration of graphene dispersion (0.154 mgmL-1) and high conductivity values (751.88 Sm-1) in 2-probe electrical measurements, all of which comparison are much favourably with typical values obtained for multi-layer graphene. Hence, this simple approach for liquid-phase graphite exfoliation provides decent potential for mass production of high-quality graphene for a wide range of applications in energy storage, optical, and electronic areas.

Keywords

• graphene
• liquid phase exfoliation
• surfactant
• hydrothermal
• concentration