In recent years, three-dimensional graphene nanoporous structure of graphene aerogels (GAs) attracts much of researchers’ attention. However, GAs have two drawbacks that hinder their wide-spread applications: GAs have high porosity that reduces their mechanical strength significantly and the graphene nanosheets in GAs made by reduced graphene oxides have low electrical conductivity.
With these limitations in mind, a research team led by Dr Zheng Guang-ping has found a solution for synthesising graphene aerogels with improved mechanical and electrical performances.
Using an electro-deposition method, GAs can be functionised with Fe-Co-P alloy. Such alloy coated on the graphene nanosheets is found to possess an amorphous structure and a nanoporous architecture of GAs. The electro-mechanical properties of GAs are significantly affected by the Fe-Co-P nanoparticles embedded inside GAs. The light-weight, high-strength and nanoporous GAs functionised with Fe-Co-P amorphous alloys are desirable sensors, actuators, and nano-electro-mechanical systems that could be controlled or manipulated by mechanical, electric and magnetic fields.