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Progress in Large-Scale Production of Graphene. Part 1: Chemical Methods

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Abstract

Graphene is a two-dimensional nanomaterial that has unique electrical, mechanical, thermal, and optical properties. For realizing the practical applications of graphene, one of the major challenges lies in cost-effective production of graphene-based nanomaterials at a large scale. Significant research efforts have been demonstrated in regard to scalable manufacturing of graphene and show strong potential for their commercialization and industrialization. Here, we review the state-of-the-art techniques developed for the scalable production of graphene. This review mainly discusses the top-down techniques including exfoliation of bulk graphite and chemical reduction of graphene oxide. Critical comparison for graphene quality, structure, and yields for different techniques is discussed and specific examples are described in detail.

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Acknowledgements

This work was made possible by National Science Foundation (Award #: 0925445) and NSF-EPSCoR-RII award. The authors thank the University of Alabama’s Office of sponsored programs and Research Grant Committee Award for additional support. The authors thank Dr. S. Kapoor for proof reading the manuscript.

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  1. Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Center for Materials for Information Technology (MINT), The University of Alabama, Box 870202, Tuscaloosa, AL, 35401, USA

    Yuan Li & Nitin Chopra

  2. Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Alabama, Box 870344, Tuscaloosa, AL, 35401, USA

    Nitin Chopra

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  1. Yuan Li
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Li, Y., Chopra, N. Progress in Large-Scale Production of Graphene. Part 1: Chemical Methods. JOM 67, 34–43 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11837-014-1236-0

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