• 文献标题:   Studies of the Reactivity of Graphene Driven by Mechanical Distortions
  • 文献类型:   Article, Early Access
  • 作  者:   HAWTHORNE N, BANERJEE S, MOORE Q, RAPPE AM, BATTEAS JD
  • 作者关键词:  
  • 出版物名称:   JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY C
  • ISSN:   1932-7447 EI 1932-7455
  • 通讯作者地址:  
  • 被引频次:   4
  • DOI:   10.1021/acs.jpcc.2c05261 EA OCT 2022
  • 出版年:   2022

▎ 摘  要

In mechanochemistry, the application of controlled forces is key to altering reaction rates and pathways to direct product yields and selectivity. However, a fundamental knowledge gap exists between what is occurring on the atomic scale in mechanically driven reactions and the resulting macroscale outcomes. Two-dimensional (2D) materials, such as graphene, proffer a model system to study the impact of mechanical forces, such as strain, on chemical reactivity, as force distributions may be applied across a well-organized atomic-scale structure comprising a single layer of C atoms. Here, using Raman micro-spectroscopy and first-principles calculations, we have investigated the reaction of graphene, under varying degrees of strain, with 4-nitrobenzenediazonium tetrafluoroborate (4-NBD). We find that only with increased out-of-plane distortion (shifting the C atoms of graphene from sp2 toward sp3 electronic states) would the reactivity be increased, with larger out-of-plane distortions yielding greater reactivity. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal that increasing the curvature of graphene decreases the activation barrier of 4-NBD functionalization and enhances the thermodynamic favorability of the reaction. Furthermore, we find that curvature affects the orientation of the graphene 2pz orbitals, and we then relate the thermodynamic feasibility of 4-NBD functionalization with the orbital orientation. These studies point to how the precise application of forces can be used to direct the functionalization of graphene for C-C bond forming reactions, which has significant implications for controlling its corresponding electronic structure in a well-defined fashion.