An experimental study on the electrical and thermal performance of reduced graphene oxide coated cotton fabric

Abstract

In this study, reduced graphene oxide (rGO) is produced from graphite by using the modified Hummers method. In order to understand the usage of rGO for smart textile applications, the cotton fabric is coated via the dip and dry method to see the effect of rGO coating, number of dip and dry cycles on the changes of thermal and electrical resistance of the fabric. Graphene oxide (GO) and rGO are characterized in terms of thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), Raman, X-ray diffraction (XRD), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). FT-IR spectra establish the effective reduction of graphene oxide to rGO which is further confirmed by Raman spectra with the reduced defect formation. SEM characterization illustrates the formation of stamp-like layers after the reduction. 30-60-90 coating cycles are performed on cotton fabric. According to TGA, the temperature at the maximum decomposition rate of cotton fabric (336°C) shifts to 357°C for the 90-cycle-coated sample. The electrical resistance of the cotton fabric decreases with the increase in the number of dip and dry cycles from 90 MΩ to 8.18 kΩ. As a result, coating cotton fabric with rGO without using a binder via dip and dry method seems to be a simple process to enhance the electrical conductivity and thermal stability of the cotton fabric. Highlights Reduced graphene oxide (rGO) was successfully prepared from graphite via the modified Hummers' method. Biodegradable and sustainable cotton fabric was coated with rGO to improve its electrical and thermal properties using a simple dip and dry method. No binding agent was used during the coating process. The increase in the rGO content decreased the surface electrical resistivity while increasing the thermal stability of the cotton fabric.