Printable graphene inks with polypropylene carbonate for low-surface-tension solvents and mild-temperature post-processing
Abstract For dispersion stability, printable graphene inks commonly employ solvents with limited surface tensions or incorporate dispersant aids that require high-temperature post-processing, restricting printability and substrate compatibility. Here, printable graphene inks are introduced with low-...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-02-01
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| Series: | Communications Materials |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s43246-025-00753-y |
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| author | Huihui He Jian Du Jiaming Li Yuxing Gu Elad Koren Woo Jin Hyun |
| author_facet | Huihui He Jian Du Jiaming Li Yuxing Gu Elad Koren Woo Jin Hyun |
| author_sort | Huihui He |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract For dispersion stability, printable graphene inks commonly employ solvents with limited surface tensions or incorporate dispersant aids that require high-temperature post-processing, restricting printability and substrate compatibility. Here, printable graphene inks are introduced with low-surface-tension solvents and mild-temperature post-processing using polypropylene carbonate (PPC). Graphene is produced by liquid-phase exfoliation with PPC, and the exfoliated graphene/PPC is used to generate printable inks. As a dispersant aid, PPC improves graphene exfoliation, dispersion stability, and redispersability in solvents with low surface tensions (<30 mJ m–2), facilitating the formulation of desirable inks for efficient aerosol jet printing on diverse substrates. Moreover, the low decomposition temperature of PPC eases its thermal removal from printed graphene, allowing high electrical conductivity with a mild post-processing temperature of 220 °C. Consequently, the graphene inks enable the fabrication of fully-printed graphene micro-supercapacitors on heat-sensitive paper substrates, exhibiting high areal capacitances, cycling stability, and mechanical resilience against bending deformation. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-efc58c2aba72485da433186e0ddb7b2e |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2662-4443 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Communications Materials |
| spelling | doaj-art-efc58c2aba72485da433186e0ddb7b2e2025-08-20T03:03:50ZengNature PortfolioCommunications Materials2662-44432025-02-01611910.1038/s43246-025-00753-yPrintable graphene inks with polypropylene carbonate for low-surface-tension solvents and mild-temperature post-processingHuihui He0Jian Du1Jiaming Li2Yuxing Gu3Elad Koren4Woo Jin Hyun5Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Guangdong Technion − Israel Institute of Technology, ShantouDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, Guangdong Technion − Israel Institute of Technology, ShantouDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, Guangdong Technion − Israel Institute of Technology, ShantouDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, Guangdong Technion − Israel Institute of Technology, ShantouDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, Technion – Israel Institute of TechnologyDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, Guangdong Technion − Israel Institute of Technology, ShantouAbstract For dispersion stability, printable graphene inks commonly employ solvents with limited surface tensions or incorporate dispersant aids that require high-temperature post-processing, restricting printability and substrate compatibility. Here, printable graphene inks are introduced with low-surface-tension solvents and mild-temperature post-processing using polypropylene carbonate (PPC). Graphene is produced by liquid-phase exfoliation with PPC, and the exfoliated graphene/PPC is used to generate printable inks. As a dispersant aid, PPC improves graphene exfoliation, dispersion stability, and redispersability in solvents with low surface tensions (<30 mJ m–2), facilitating the formulation of desirable inks for efficient aerosol jet printing on diverse substrates. Moreover, the low decomposition temperature of PPC eases its thermal removal from printed graphene, allowing high electrical conductivity with a mild post-processing temperature of 220 °C. Consequently, the graphene inks enable the fabrication of fully-printed graphene micro-supercapacitors on heat-sensitive paper substrates, exhibiting high areal capacitances, cycling stability, and mechanical resilience against bending deformation.https://doi.org/10.1038/s43246-025-00753-y |
| spellingShingle | Huihui He Jian Du Jiaming Li Yuxing Gu Elad Koren Woo Jin Hyun Printable graphene inks with polypropylene carbonate for low-surface-tension solvents and mild-temperature post-processing Communications Materials |
| title | Printable graphene inks with polypropylene carbonate for low-surface-tension solvents and mild-temperature post-processing |
| title_full | Printable graphene inks with polypropylene carbonate for low-surface-tension solvents and mild-temperature post-processing |
| title_fullStr | Printable graphene inks with polypropylene carbonate for low-surface-tension solvents and mild-temperature post-processing |
| title_full_unstemmed | Printable graphene inks with polypropylene carbonate for low-surface-tension solvents and mild-temperature post-processing |
| title_short | Printable graphene inks with polypropylene carbonate for low-surface-tension solvents and mild-temperature post-processing |
| title_sort | printable graphene inks with polypropylene carbonate for low surface tension solvents and mild temperature post processing |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s43246-025-00753-y |
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