Scanning Electronic Microscopy for Analysis of the Effects of Surfactants on De-Wrinkling and Dispersion of Graphene

Graphene was dispersed using a tip sonicator and the effect of surfactants were analysed. Sodium Dodecyl Sulphate (SDS) and Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) were compared to observe whether or not they had any effect on any de-wrinkling, and secondly whether they aided to achieve better dispersions. There is a huge demand for wrinkle free graphene as this will greatly increase its usefulness in various engineering applications. A comprehensive literature on dewrinkling graphene has been discussed. Low magnification Scanning Electronic Microscopy (SEM) was conducted to assess the quality of graphene de-wrinkling. The utilization of the PVA has significant effect on de-wrinkling whereas SDS had minimal effect on the dewrinkling of graphene.

Authors:

• Kostandinos Katsamangas
• B. Ramachandra Bhat
• Fawad Inam

Keywords:

• De-wrinkling
• dispersion
• graphene
• scanning electron microscopy.

References:

[1] Graphene-based composites. Huang, Xiao, et al., et al. 41, s.l.: Chem.
Soc. Rev, 2012.
[2] Graphene based composite materials. Stankovich, Sasha, et al., et al.
2006, Vol. 442.
[3] Graphene Electronics: Materials, Devices, and Circuit. Wu, Yanquing, et
al., et al. 7, 2013, Vol. 101.
[4] Status and Prospect. Geim, Andre K. 1530, 2009, Vol. science 324.
[5] Ultrathin, Transparent, and flexible graphene films for supercapacitor
application. Yu, Aiping, et al., et al. 253105, s.l.: Applied Physics
Letters, 2010, Vol. 96.
[6] Graphene-Based Liquid Crystal Device. Blake, Peter, et al., et al. 6, s.l.:
Nano letters, 2008, Vol. 8. 1704/1708.
[7] The rise of graphene. Geim, Andre K and Novoselov, K S. s.l.: nature
manterials, 2007, Vol. 6.
[8] Electric Field EffectinAutomically Thin Carbon Films. Novoselov, K S,
et al., et al. s.l.: Science, 2004, Vol. 306.
[9] Graphene nano-ribbon electronics. Chen, Zhihiong, et al., et al. s.l.:
Science Direct, 207, Vol. 40. 228-232.
[10] Graphene Oxide Dispersions in Organic Solvents. Paredes, J I, et al., et
al. 19, s.l.: Langmuir, 2008, Vol. 74. 10563.
[11] High-Concentration, Surfactant-stabilized Graphene Dispersions .Lotya,
Mustafa, et al., et al. 6, s.l. :Acsnano, 2010, Vol. 4. 3155-3162.
[12] Chemical vapor deposition of thin graphite films of nanometer
thickness. Obraztsov, A N, et al., et al. s.l.: Science direct, 2007, Vol.
Carbon 45. 2017-2021.
[13] Large Area, Few-Layer Graphene Films on arbitrary Substrates by
Chemical vapor Deposition. Reina, Alfonso, et al., et al. 1, s.l.: Nano
letter, 2009, Vol. 9.
[14] The Origin of Wrikles on Transfered Graphene. Liu, Nan, et al., et al.
10, s.l. :Nano.Res, 2011, Vol. 4. 996-1004.
[15] Tuning Graphene morphology by substrate towards wrinkle-free
devices: Experiment and Simulation. Lanza, M, et al., et al. s.l.: journal
of applied physics, 2013, Vol. 113.
[16] Emerging Methods for Producing Monodisperse Graphene. Green,
Alexander A and Hersam, Mark C. Evanston: Physical chemistry letters,
2010.
[17] Robust graphene dispersion with amphiphlicperylene-polyglycidol. Liu,
Yun, et al., et al. s.l.: Materials letters, 2014.
[18] Dispersion of graphene in aqueous solutions with different types of
surfactants and the production of graphene films by spray or drop
coating. Pu, Nen-Wun, et al., et al. s.l.: ELSEVIER, 2012. 140-146.
[19] Polyvinyl Alcohol as an Emulsifying Agent .Biehn, G F and Ernsberger,
M L. 8, Wilmington: E.I.du Pont de Nemours & Company. Inc., 1948,
Vol. 40.
[20] Graphene-based polymer nanocomposites. Potts, Jeffrey R, et al., et al.
s.l.: Elsevier, 2011.