Industrial Graphene Oxide

 

The hydrophilic nature of graphene oxide allows it to disperse easily in water and various organic solvents, making it more processable than graphene. This property is crucial for applications requiring solution processing, such as coating, printing, and composite fabrication. Despite being not as strong as pristine graphene, graphene oxide still possesses exceptional mechanical strength and flexibility. This makes it suitable for reinforcing materials, including polymers, to create composites with enhanced mechanical properties.The introduction of oxygen-containing groups disrupts the sp2 bonding in graphene, which significantly reduces its electrical conductivity, making GO an electrical insulator. However, reduced graphene oxide (rGO), obtained by removing the oxygen groups from GO, can restore some of the electrical conductivity.Graphene oxide retains the high specific surface area characteristic of graphene, which can exceed 2600 m²/g. This feature is particularly beneficial for adsorption, catalysis, and as a support material in battery and supercapacitor electrodes.