Seaweed biomass derived bio solvents for the large scale production of few layered graphene nanosheets from graphite

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

Large-scale production of graphene sheets by liquid-phase exfoliation of graphite is a challenging task from a sustainability point of view. Certain bio-derived solvents were found to exfoliate graphite to produce single-layered graphene sheets but the high cost of the solvent is always a deterring factor towards upscaling of the process. Herein, Kappaphycus alvarezii, a cultivable red seaweed is demonstrated as a sustainable resource for producing a bio solvent for exfoliation and to produce graphene sheets from graphite. A solvent system consisting of levulinic acid, acetic acid, and γ-valerolactone was prepared from the polysaccharide obtained from the seaweed biomass through acid hydrolysis under pressure and the mixture was found to exfoliate graphite to produce few-layered pristine graphene nanosheets. The process is scalable and cost-effective and the seaweed biomass-derived solvent mixture can be recovered and reused in the subsequent cycles of exfoliation for large-scale production of graphene nanosheets.