Ahmed T.M., Rahman M.M., Asmatulu E.
Wichita State University, US
Keywords: graphene, nanocomposite concretes, recycling, waste graphite
Graphite is a stack of carbon layers where carbon atoms form hexagons in a honeycomb structure. Graphene on the other hand is a single atom thick layer which offers unique physical, chemical and biological properties compared to graphite. Recycling graphite waste and converting it into graphene may offer many economic, environmental and health benefits, and may also be used in many applications. Graphite has been used widely in iron-steel, chemical, and nuclear industries for electrical, mechanical and other applications (e.g., metallurgy, pencil, coatings, lubricants and paint). Especially, most of the anode materials of batteries for car, truck and other vehicles and electronic devices are made of graphite. After two to four years of life-time, these anode materials are either landfilled or sent to an incineration furnace. The major goal of this study is to produce recycled graphene from graphite waste. The objectives of this study are to recycle graphite from batteries and other sources, exfoliate it using surfactants and electrochemical methods, and investigate the effects of exfoliated graphene. In this study, graphite-based batteries were collected from local waste collection companies and the used graphite was manually removed from the batteries. After washing and cleaning processes, The graphite rods obtained are exfoliated to single layers using an electrochemical exfoliation process.
Journal: TechConnect Briefs
Volume: 2, Materials for Energy, Efficiency and Sustainability: TechConnect Briefs 2018
Published: May 13, 2018
Pages: 207 - 210
Industry sectors: Advanced Materials & Manufacturing | Energy & Sustainability
Topics: Materials for Sustainable Building, Sustainable Materials
ISBN: 978-0-9975117-9-6