• 文献标题:   Zwitterionic Conjugated Surfactant Functionalization of Graphene with pH-Independent Dispersibility: An Efficient Electron Mediator for the Oxygen Evolution Reaction in Acidic Media
  • 文献类型:   Article
  • 作  者:   KIM U, CHO Y, JEON D, KIM Y, PARK S, SEO J, LEE J, OH NK, LEE G, RYU J, YANG C, PARK H
  • 作者关键词:   dispersion, electrocatalyst, electron mediator, graphene, oxygen evolution reaction, zwitterion functionalization
  • 出版物名称:   SMALL
  • ISSN:   1613-6810 EI 1613-6829
  • 通讯作者地址:   Ulsan Natl Inst Sci Technol
  • 被引频次:   0
  • DOI:   10.1002/smll.201906635 EA FEB 2020
  • 出版年:   2020

▎ 摘  要

The functionalization of graphene has been extensively used as an effective route for modulating the surface property of graphene, and enhancing the dispersion stability of graphene in aqueous solutions via functionalization has been widely investigated to expand its use for various applications across a range of fields. Herein, an effective approach is described for enhancing the dispersibility of graphene in aqueous solutions at different pH levels via non-covalent zwitterion functionalization. The results show that a surfactant with electron-deficient carbon atoms in its backbone structure and large pi-pi interactive area enables strong interactions with graphene, and the zwitterionic side terminal groups of the molecule support the dispersibility of graphene in various pH conditions. Experimental and computational studies confirm that perylene diimide amino N-oxide (PDI-NO) allows efficient functionalization and pH-independent dispersion of graphene enabled by hydration repulsion effects induced by PDI-NO. The PDI-NO functionalized graphene is successfully used in the oxygen evolution reaction as an electron mediator for boosting the electrocatalytic activity of a Ru-based polyoxometalate catalyst in an acidic medium. The proposed strategy is expected to bring significant advances in producing highly dispersible graphene in aqueous medium with pH-independent stability, thus broadening the application range of graphene.