Aqueous graphene oxide-dispersed carbon nanotubes as inks for the scalable production of all-carbon transparent conductive films. Issue 29 (11th July 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: He, Linxiang; Tjong, Sie Chin
• Is Part Of: Journal of materials chemistry. Volume 4:Issue 29(2016)
• Page Start: 7043
• Page End: 7051
• Publication Date: 2016-07-11
• Subjects: Materials -- Periodicals; Chemistry, Analytic -- Periodicals; Optical materials -- Research -- Periodicals; Electronics -- Materials -- Research -- Periodicals; 543.0284
• DOI: 10.1039/c6tc01224h
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2050-7526

Abstract

Abstract : Aqueous graphene oxide-dispersed multi-walled carbon nanotubes were used as inks for the simple, fast, and industrially scalable fabrication of hybrid transparent conductive films by rod coating. Abstract : We report the utilization of aqueous graphene oxide (GO)-dispersed multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) as inks for the simple, fast, and industrially scalable fabrication of transparent conductive films (TCFs) on a large scale. The GO–MWNT inks were rod-coated on uniform thin films, which were then chemically reduced by hydroiodic acid (HI) into reduced graphene oxide (rGO)–MWNT TCFs. We show how to utilize GO to make uniform dispersions of MWNTs in water, and how to optimize the wetting and rheological properties of the dispersion for coating and drying without dewetting. Treatment with HI yielded films with good electro-optical performance (sheet resistance of 380 Ω sq −1 at a transparency of 85%). Evaluation of the figure of merit (FoM) indicates that the rGO–MWNT film is superior to rGO, MWNT and un-doped single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) films. The use of the rGO–MWNT film as a transparent heater for defrosters is then demonstrated. Further scientific studies will pave the way for the deployment of GO–MWNT inks in commercial applications.