Understanding Mechanical Response of Elastomeric Graphene Networks
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Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Ultra-light porous networks based on nano-carbon materials (such as graphene or carbon nanotubes) have attracted increasing interest owing to their applications in wide fields from bioengineering to electrochemical devices. However, it is often difficult to translate the properties of nanomaterials to bulk three-dimensional networks with a control of their mechanical properties. In this work, we constructed elastomeric graphene porous networks with well-defined structures by freeze casting and thermal reduction, and investigated systematically the effect of key microstructural features. The porous networks made of large reduced graphene oxide flakes (>20 μm) are superelastic and exhibit high energy absorption, showing much enhanced mechanical properties than those with small flakes (<2 μm). A better restoration of the graphitic nature also has a considerable effect. In comparison, microstructural differences, such as the foam architecture or the cell size have smaller or negligible effect on the mechanical response. The recoverability and energy adsorption depend on density with the latter exhibiting a minimum due to the interplay between wall fracture and friction during deformation. These findings suggest that an improvement in the mechanical properties of porous graphene networks significantly depend on the engineering of the graphene flake that controls the property of the cell walls.
Date Issued
2015-09-08
Date Acceptance
2015-07-15
Citation
Scientific Reports, 2015, 5
ISSN
2045-2322
Publisher
Nature Publishing Group
Journal / Book Title
Scientific Reports
Volume
5
Copyright Statement
© 2015, Rights Managed by Nature Publishing Group. This article has been distributed under a Creative Commons CC-BY license (please see the article itself for the license version number). You may reuse this material without obtaining permission from Nature Publishing Group, providing that the author and the original source of publication are fully acknowledged, as per the terms of the license.
For license terms, please see http://creativecommons.org/
For license terms, please see http://creativecommons.org/
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Publication Status
Published
Article Number
13712