Clay-Facilitated Aqueous Dispersion of Graphite and Poly(vinyl alcohol) Aerogels Filled with Binary Nanofillers

Dispersion of graphite in water was achieved using clay as dispersing aid. In the absence of polymer, the clay/graphite suspensions were sufficiently stable to produce aerogels composed of very thin layers of uniformly dispersed nanoparticles. Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVOH) aerogels containing binary na...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Gels 2018-01, Vol.4 (1), p.8
Main Authors: Liu, Lei, Wang, Yuxin, Alhassan, Saeed M, Sun, Hua, Choi, Kyungwho, Yu, Choongho, Schiraldi, David A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aerogels
aqueous dispersion
Carbon
Clay
Composite materials
Compression tests
Compressive properties
Densification
Dispersion
electrical properties
Graphene
Graphite
Heat conductivity
mechanical properties
Modulus of elasticity
Nanocomposites
Nanoparticles
polymer aerogels
Polymers
Polyvinyl alcohol
Ratios
Surfactants
Thin films
X ray spectra
X-ray diffraction
Yield stress
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Summary:Dispersion of graphite in water was achieved using clay as dispersing aid. In the absence of polymer, the clay/graphite suspensions were sufficiently stable to produce aerogels composed of very thin layers of uniformly dispersed nanoparticles. Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVOH) aerogels containing binary nanofillers (clay plus graphite) were then fabricated and tested. These composites were found to maintain low thermal and electrical conductivities even with high loading of graphite. A unique compressive stress-strain behavior was observed for the aerogel, exhibiting a plateau in the densification region, likely due to sliding between clay and graphite layers within the PVOH matrix. The aerogels containing only graphite exhibited higher compressive modulus, yield stress and toughness values than the samples filled with binary nanofillers. X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectra for the same composite aerogel before and after compression testing illustrated the compression-induced dispersion changes of nanofillers. Composites containing 50 wt % graphite demonstrated a downshift of its 2D Raman peak implying graphite exfoliation to graphene with less than 5 layers.
ISSN:2310-2861
2310-2861
DOI:10.3390/gels4010008