Carbon nanomaterials: Synthesis, properties and applications in electrochemical sensors and energy conversion systems

Abstract

Carbon materials secure to progress a plenty of real-world technologies. In particular, they are emerging materials in numerous electrochemical applications, including electrochemical sensor and biosensor platforms, fuel cells, water electrolyzers, etc. Nanostructured carbon materials (NCMs) offer integrated advantages, including upright electrical conductivity, built-in and structural flexibility, flimsy, huge chemical and thermal stability, alleviate of chemical functionalization, potential mass production, etc., allowing them to be emergent candidate materials for various electrochemical employments. In consequent, enormous research efforts are dedicated to the structure-, dimension- and pore-size/structure controlled synthesis carbon nanomaterials with unique characteristics for uses in next-generation electrochemical devices. Herein we systematically discuss the recent developments carbon nanomaterials (carbon nanotubes, graphene, carbon dot, biomass-derived carbon, etc.) their synthetic strategies, surface active sites, and other surface characteristics, electrode fabrication methods, working hypothesis, electrochemical activity and the state-of-the-art electrochemical applications. Development of numerous carbon nanomaterials with rational design of controlled nano-/micro-scale structures, structure–property correlation and mechanistic conception for high performance electrochemical devices are introduced. The figure-of-merit, emerging challenges, future perspectives, and vital aspects integrated with the invention of new class of nanoscale carbon nanomaterials in electrochemical technologies furthermore are described.