Multifunctional flexible membranes based on reduced graphene oxide/tin dioxide nanocomposite and cellulose fibers

Garino, Nadia;Lamberti, Andrea;Stassi, Stefano;Castellino, Micaela;Fontana, Marco;Roppolo, Ignazio;Sacco, Adriano;Pirri, Candido Fabrizio;Chiappone, Annalisa

2019-01-01

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Abstract

Self-standing and flexible membranes based on reduced graphene oxide (rGO)/SnO 2 nanocomposite and cellulose fibers are here presented. The flexible membranes are prepared through an easy and eco-friendly protocol: the rGO/SnO 2 nanocomposite is synthetized via a microwave-assisted procedure and then assembled with microfibrillated cellulose (MFC) through a water-based process. This process leads to the formation of a nanocomposite in which cellulose nanofibers are integrated with the graphene matrix. Beyond the good flexibility, the nanocomposite membranes present interesting properties in terms of capacitive behavior and catalytic activity: the electrochemical characterizations revealed that such material is an extremely competitive candidate for the oxygen reduction reaction, even comparable to the commonly used Pt-based catalysts. Furthermore, the possible application as electrodes for flexible supercapacitors and piezoresistive sensors is also investigated showing the great potential of such composite material.