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Facile synthesis of Yb2O3–graphene nanocomposites for enhanced energy and environmental applications

Polymer Bulletin volume 77, pages 3891–3906 (2020)Cite this article

Abstract

Graphene has been reduced from graphene oxide, and it has been used to prepare the Yb2O3–graphene nanocomposites. Nanocomposites have been prepared by adding graphene with ytterbium oxide in 1, 3 and 5 weight percentage and named as Yb2O3G1, Yb2O3G3 and Yb2O3G5, respectively. Powder X-ray diffraction patterns have been obtained to study the structural identification. FTIR and laser Raman spectral analyses have been carried out to identify the functional groups and to confirm the formation of nanocomposites. The FESEM and HRTEM images have been obtained to study the morphology of the synthesized compounds. EPMA technique has been used to analyze the elemental composition by obtaining elemental mapping and energy-dispersive spectrum. The binding states of various elements present in the composites were analyzed and discussed using X-ray photoelectron spectra. The capacitance behavior and photocatalytic performance have been studied using electrochemical studies and optical absorption spectra. Significant enhancement of the capacitance behavior and the photocatalytic performance was observed as the presence of graphene increased in the composites.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Materials Research, Thiruvalluvar College of Engineering and Technology, Vandavasi, 604 505, India

    T. Saravanan

  2. Department of Physics, Thiru Kolanjiappar Government Arts College, Vriddhachalam, 606 001, India

    P. Anandan

  3. Department of Civil Engineering, Disasters Prevention Research Institute, Yeungnam University, Gyeongsan, 38541, Republic of Korea

    M. Shanmugam

  4. Frontier Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences, Tohoku University, Sendai, 980 858, Japan

    M. Azhagurajan

  5. Centre for Nanoscience and Technology, Anna University, Chennai, 600 025, India

    M. Mohamed Ismail, M. Arivanandhan & R. Jayavel

  6. Research Institute of Electronics, Shizuoka University, Johoku, Naka-ku, Hamamatsu, 432 8011, Japan

    Y. Hayakawa

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  1. T. Saravanan
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  2. P. Anandan
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  3. M. Shanmugam
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  4. M. Azhagurajan
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  5. M. Mohamed Ismail
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Correspondence to P. Anandan.

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Saravanan, T., Anandan, P., Shanmugam, M. et al. Facile synthesis of Yb2O3–graphene nanocomposites for enhanced energy and environmental applications. Polym. Bull. 77, 3891–3906 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00289-019-02945-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00289-019-02945-2

Keywords

  • Graphene
  • Nanocomposite
  • Rare earth
  • Cyclic voltammetry
  • Photocatalytic