Direct preparation of few layer graphene epoxy nanocomposites from untreated flake graphite

James Throckmorton, Giuseppe Palmese

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

31 Scopus citations

Abstract

The natural availability of flake graphite and the exceptional properties of graphene and graphene-polymer composites create a demand for simple, cost-effective, and scalable methods for top-down graphite exfoliation. This work presents a novel method of few layer graphite nanocomposite preparation directly from untreated flake graphite using a room temperature ionic liquid and laminar shear processing regimen. The ionic liquid serves both as a solvent and initiator for epoxy polymerization and is incorporated chemically into the matrix. This nanocomposite shows low electrical percolation (0.005 v/v) and low thickness (1-3 layers) graphite/graphene flakes by TEM. Additionally, the effect of processing conditions by rheometry and comparison with solvent-free conditions reveal the interactions between processing and matrix properties and provide insight into the theory of the chemical and physical exfoliation of graphite crystals and the resulting polymer matrix dispersion. An interaction model that correlates the interlayer shear physics of graphite flakes and processing parameters is proposed and tested.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)14870-14877
Number of pages8
JournalACS Applied Materials and Interfaces
Volume7
Issue number27
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 15 2015
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • General Materials Science

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