The influence of wrinkling in reduced graphene oxide on their adsorption and catalytic properties

Reduced graphene oxide (RGO) with different amounts of wrinkling were synthesized in a water-ethylene glycol (EG) system with different volume ratios. The obtained RGO were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning and transmission electron microscopy, thermogravimetric analyze, and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller N-2 adsorption-desorption analysis. It was found that the degree of wrinkling decreased with an increase in the EG/water volume ratio. A possible mechanism for the formation of wrinkles was proposed. The adsorptive and catalytic properties of the RGO were investigated. Bare RGO were used to adsorb dyes as well as catalyze the reduction of 4-nitrophenol. The results revealed that neither the most wrinkled nor the smoothest RGO was best for the adsorptive and catalytic applications, while an intermediate state showed the best performance. A relationship between morphology, and the adsorptive and catalytic performance was discussed. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.