Heteroatom doping can endow graphene with various new or improved electromagnetic, physicochemical, optical, and structural properties. This greatly extends the arsenal of graphene materials and their potential for a spectrum of applications. Considering the latest developments, we comprehensively and critically discuss the syntheses, properties and emerging applications of the growing family of heteroatom-doped graphene materials. The advantages, disadvantages, and preferential doping features of current synthesis approaches are compared, aiming to provide clues for developing new and controllable synthetic routes. We emphasize the distinct properties resulting from various dopants, different doping levels and configurations, and synergistic effects from co-dopants, hoping to assist a better understanding of doped graphene materials. The mechanisms underlying their advantageous uses for energy storage, energy conversion, sensing, and gas storage are highlighted, aiming to stimulate more competent applications.

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Heteroatom-doped graphene materials: syntheses, properties and applications

and Applications of Fullerenes, Carbon Dots, Nanotubes, Graphene, Nanodiamonds, and Combined Superstructures Vasilios Georgakilas,† Jason A. Perman,‡ Jiri Tucek,‡ and Radek Zboril*,‡ †Material Science Department, University of Patras, 26504 Rio Patras, Greece ‡Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacky University in Olomouc, 17 listopadu 1192/12, 771 46 Olomouc, Czech Republic

Broad family of carbon nanoallotropes: classification, chemistry, and applications of fullerenes, carbon dots, nanotubes, graphene, nanodiamonds, and combined superstructures.

The emergence of graphene nanosheet (GN, 2010 Nobel Prize for Physics) has recently opened up an exciting new field in the science and technology of two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials with continuously growing academic and technological impetus. GN exhibits unique electronic, optical, magnetic, thermal and mechanical properties arising from its strictly 2D structure and thus has many important technical applications. Actually, GN-based materials have enormous potential to rival or even surpass the performance of carbon nanotube-based counterparts, given that cheap, large-scale production and processing methods for high-quality GN become available. Therefore, the studies on GN in the aspects of chemistry, physical, materials, biology and interdisciplinary science have been in full flow in the past five years. In this critical review, from the viewpoint of chemistry and materials, we will cover recent significant advances in synthesis, molecular engineering, thin film, hybrids, and energy and analytical applications of the “star-material” GN together with discussion on its major challenges and opportunities for future GN research (315 references).

Graphene nanosheet: synthesis, molecular engineering, thin film, hybrids, and energy and analytical applications

Large-Scale Fabrication of Boron Nitride Nanosheets and Their Utilization in Polymeric Composites with Improved Thermal and Mechanical Properties

This review article aims to provide an updated and comprehensive description of the development of the Electric Current Activated/assisted Sintering technique (ECAS) for the obtainment of dense materials including nanostructured ones. The use of ECAS for pure sintering purposes, when starting from already synthesized powders promoters, and to obtain the desired material by simultaneously performing synthesis and consolidation in one-step is reviewed. Specifically, more than a thousand papers published on this subject during the past decades are taken into account. The experimental procedures, formation mechanisms, characteristics, and functionality of a wide spectrum of dense materials fabricated by ECAS are presented. The influence of the most important operating parameters (i.e. current intensity, temperature, processing time, etc.) on product characteristics and process dynamics is reviewed for a large family of materials including ceramics, intermetallics, metal–ceramic and ceramic–ceramic composites. In this review, systems where synthesis and densification stages occur simultaneously, i.e. a fully dense product is formed immediately after reaction completion, as well as those ones for which a satisfactory densification degree is reached only by maintaining the application of the electric current once the full reaction conversion is obtained, are identified. In addition, emphasis is given to the obtainment of nanostructured dense materials due to their rapid progress and wide applications. Specifically, the effect of mechanical activation by ball milling of starting powders on ECAS process dynamics and product characteristics (i.e. density and microstructure) is analysed. The emerging theme from the large majority of the reviewed investigations is the comparison of ECAS over conventional methods including pressureless sintering, hot pressing, and others. Theoretical analysis pertaining to such technique is also proposed following the last results obtained on this topic.

Consolidation/synthesis of materials by electric current activated/assisted sintering

Nitrogen (N)-doped graphene with different atomic percentages (2.3–4.7 at%) of N has been synthesized by thermal annealing of reduced graphene oxide (RGO) in ammonia gas for different times. The effects of annealing time on the structure, electrical and optical properties of N-doped graphene have been systematically investigated by using various analytical techniques. XPS, FTIR, Raman, and XRD studies show that there is a gradual structural change in N-doped graphene sheets with increasing annealing time, resulting from the increase of carbon and simultaneous decrease of oxygen and N contents. High resolution N1s spectra reveal that the pyridine-N and pyrrolic-N contents decrease with increasing annealing time, whereas the amount of quaternary-N increases. Importantly, it has been found that the annealing time caused significant changes in both the electrical and the optical properties of N-doped graphene. The electrical resistance of N-doped graphene is greatly reduced compared to that of GO and RGO, and found to further decrease with increasing annealing time, possibly due to the increase of sp2 carbon networks and decrease of oxygen content as well as defects associated with the incorporation of N. The room-temperature photoluminescence (PL) properties of graphene oxide (GO), RGO and N-doped graphene were systematically studied with regard to the annealing time. The results showed that the PL spectrum of GO exhibits a peak emission maximum at around 700 nm, while that of RGO is found to be strongly blue-shifted with two distinct emission peaks: green emission at 485–500 nm and blue emission at 420–428 nm. For N-doped graphene samples, the blue emission intensity could significantly be enhanced by controlling the annealing time, which leads to a promising blue and green light-emitting material with controllable optical properties.

Significant enhancement of blue emission and electrical conductivity of N-doped graphene

Microwave-assisted synthesis of CaMoO4 nano-powders by a citrate complex method and its photoluminescence property

Comparison study of structural and optical properties of boron-doped and undoped graphene oxide films

Microwave-assisted synthesis of nanocrystalline MWO4 (M: Ca, Ni) via water-based citrate complex precursor

The structural modification of pure DLC films was attempted by the addition of SiO structures into the DLC films. The chemical structures of SiO x /DLC films were investigated by FT-IR, XPS and Raman spectrometer and the microstructure by TEM. The SiO x /DLC films composing of two amorphous materials showed that amorphous silica were independently interconnected with amorphous hydrocarbon. The mechanical properties of SiO x /DLC films deposited at different bias voltages were discussed in terms of Raman parameters. The friction coefficient of SiO x /DLC films was obtained under the different applied loads and environmental conditions. The frictional behavior of SiO x /DLC films deposited at different bias voltages was investigated.

Kwang Bo Shim

Papers

Significant enhancement of blue emission and electrical conductivity of N-doped graphene

Microwave-assisted synthesis of CaMoO4 nano-powders by a citrate complex method and its photoluminescence property

Comparison study of structural and optical properties of boron-doped and undoped graphene oxide films

Microwave-assisted synthesis of nanocrystalline MWO4 (M: Ca, Ni) via water-based citrate complex precursor

Microstructure and tribological properties of SiOx/DLC films grown by PECVD