Paper Number
PG25 

Session
Polyelectrolytes, Self-assembling Systems & Gels

Title
Probing the shear mechanical properties of graphene oxide hydrogels with tailored crosslinks for use as structural electrodes for energy storage

Presentation Date and Time
October 18, 2018 (Thursday) 10:25

Track / Room
Track 3 / Bellaire

Authors (Click on name to view author profile)

  1. Shah, Smit A. (Texas A&M University, Chemical Engineering)
  2. Parviz, Dorsa (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Chemical Engineering)
  3. Sun, Wanmei (Texas A&M University, Chemical Engineering)
  4. Kulhanek, Devon (Texas A&M University, Chemical Engineering)
  5. Lutkenhaus, Jodie L. (Texas A&M University, Chemical Engineering)
  6. Green, Micah J. (Texas A&M University, Chemical Engineering)

Author and Affiliation Lines (in printed abstract book)
Smit A. Shah1, Dorsa Parviz2, Wanmei Sun1, Devon Kulhanek1, Jodie L. Lutkenhaus1, and Micah J. Green1
1Chemical Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77840; 2Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA

Speaker / Presenter 
Shah, Smit A.

Text of Abstract
Graphene oxide (GO) based hydrogels made using sol-gel self-assembly approach have gained remarkable interest because of their high specific surface area and electrical conductivity. These properties make them a suitable active material for electrochemical energy storage applications. The electrical and mechanical properties of these hydrogels are influenced by the type and density of their crosslinks. However, detailed understanding of the rheology of these GO hydrogels is missing. GO hydrogels are known to comprise of physical crosslinks (p-p stacking) and chemical crosslinks (C-N-C covalent bonding). In this study, we investigate the composites of GO gel with aramid nanofibers (ANFs) with a goal to obtain improved mechanical properties (compressibility, toughness, strain to fracture) for their application as structural supercapacitor electrodes. We synthesized GO-ANF composite hydrogels with ANF content varying from 1-15 wt.% and compared their oscillatory shear rheological properties. Storage and loss modulus were found to be frequency independent, and storage modulus (G’) was an order of magnitude higher than loss modulus (G”), which is indicative of a robust crosslinked hydrogel. Our results will help understand the effect of ANFs as fillers on the crosslinking in GO hydrogels and evaluate their suitability for application as structural electrodes.