Preliminary comparison of different reduction methods of graphene oxide

Abstract

The reduction of graphene oxide (GO) is a promising route to bulk produce graphene-based sheets. Different reduction processes result in reduced graphene oxide (RGO) with different properties. In this paper three reduction methods, chemical, thermal and electrochemical reduction, were compared on three aspects including morphology and structure, reduction degree and electrical conductivity by means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction(XRD), the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) spectrum, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and four-point probe conductivity measurement. Understanding the different characteristics of different RGO by preliminary comparison is helpful in tailoring the characteristics of graphene materials for diverse applications and developing a simple, green, and efficient method for the mass production of graphene.