@article{d8e29163075a4d22b765859285206065,
title = "Graphene Size-Dependent Multifunctional Properties of Unidirectional Graphene Aerogel/Epoxy Nanocomposites",
abstract = "Unidirectional graphene aerogels (UGAs) with tunable densities, degrees of alignment, and electrical conductivities are prepared by varying the average size of precursor graphene oxide (GO) sheets between 1.1 and 1596 μm2. UGAs prepared using ultralarge GO (UL-UGA) outperform those made from small GO in these properties. The UL-UGA/epoxy composites prepared by infiltrating liquid epoxy resin into the porous UGA structure exhibit an excellent electrical conductivity of 0.135 S/cm, along with an ultralow percolation threshold of 0.0066 vol %, which is one of the lowest values ever reported for all graphene-based composites. Owing to their three-dimensional interconnected network, a high degree of alignment, and effective reduction, UL-UGAs effectively enhance the fracture toughness of epoxy by 69% at 0.11 vol % graphene content through unique toughening mechanisms, such as crack pinning, crack deflection, interfacial debonding, and graphene rupture. These aerogels and composites can be mass-produced thanks to the facile, scalable, and cost-efficient fabrication process, which will find various multifunctional applications.",
keywords = "epoxy composites, fracture toughness, graphene aerogel, percolation threshold, size effect",
author = "Han, {Ne Myo} and Zhenyu Wang and Xi Shen and Ying Wu and Xu Liu and Qingbin Zheng and Kim, {Tae Hyung} and Jinglei Yang and Kim, {Jang Kyo}",
note = "Funding Information: The project was supported by the Research Grants Council (GRF Projects: 16203415 16229216, and 16205517) of Hong Kong SAR. N.M.H. was a recipient of the Bai Xian Asian Future Leaders Scholarship, whereas Z.W. and X.S. were recipients of the Hong Kong Ph.D. Fellowship. Technical assistance from Materials Characterization and Preparation Facilities (MCPF) Advanced Engineering Materials Facilities (AEMF), Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, and Division of Biomedical Engineering at HKUST is appreciated. Funding Information: The project was supported by the Research Grants Council (GRF Projects: 16203415, 16229216, and 16205517) of Hong Kong SAR. N.M.H. was a recipient of the Bai Xian Asian Future Leaders Scholarship, whereas Z.W. and X.S. were recipients of the Hong Kong Ph.D. Fellowship. Technical assistance from Materials Characterization and Preparation Facilities (MCPF), Advanced Engineering Materials Facilities (AEMF), Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, and Division of Biomedical Engineering at HKUST is appreciated. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2018 American Chemical Society.",
year = "2018",
month = feb,
day = "21",
doi = "10.1021/acsami.7b19069",
language = "British English",
volume = "10",
pages = "6580--6592",
journal = "ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces",
issn = "1944-8244",
publisher = "American Chemical Society",
number = "7",
}