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Evaluating influence of solvents in graphene synthesis via electrochemical exfoliation for energy applications NPW Rathuwadu 1# , and ON Malawalaarachchi 1, 2 1 Institute for Combinatorial Advanced Research and Education, General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University, Ratmalana, Sri Lanka 2 Faculty of Graduate Studies, General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University, Ratmalana, Sri Lanka # rathuwadunpw@kdu.ac.lk Electrochemical exfoliation is a greener and a simpler method for synthesizing high-quality graphene compared to conventional chemical methods. However, restacking of graphene layers, which disrupts its superior properties, remains a challenge. This study focused on optimizing solvent parameters to enhance the electrochemical exfoliation of graphite in an aqueous medium, incorporating a small percentage of organic solvents to facilitate graphene synthesis. Operating conditions were first optimized, followed by the synthesis using two natural graphite materials (KG/BG) with different solvents. The resulting graphene materials were structurally characterized using UV-Vis spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and Raman spectroscopy, confirming successful synthesis of graphene. Electrochemical studies were performed using a common redox probe. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy showed enhanced ion diffusion and reduced electron transfer resistance for KG-graphene-NMP and BG-graphene-ACN. Cyclic voltammetry revealed improved performance, with KG-Graphene-NMP and BG-Graphene-ACN achieving peak currents of 88.04 μA (860.6%) and 74.16 μA (343.5%) and peak-to-peak separations of 73.2 and 70.8 mV, respectively. Solvents with compatible surface tension, Hansen, and Hildebrand solubility parameters demonstrated strong correlations with observed peak currents. The commendable electrochemical performance of synthesized graphene materials suggests their potential use in energy applications like supercapacitors and batteries. Key words: graphite, graphene, electrochemical exfoliation, solvents References 1. Abdelkader, A. M., Cooper, A. J., Dryfe, R. A. W., & Kinloch, I. A. (2015). How to get between the sheets: A review of recent works on the electrochemical exfoliation of graphene materials from bulk graphite. Nanoscale , 7(16), 6944–6956. 2. Aghamohammadi, H., Eslami-Farsani, R., Torabian, M., & Amousa, N. (2020). Recent advances in one-pot functionalization of graphene using electrochemical exfoliation of graphite: A review study, Synthetic Metals , 269. 3. Liu, F., Wang, C., Sui, X., Riaz, M. A., Xu, M., Wei, L., & Chen, Y. (2019). Synthesis of graphene materials by electrochemical exfoliation: Recent progress and future potential. Carbon Energy , 1(2), 173–199.
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