Mussel-Inspired Surface Modifications of Graphene Oxide Nanosheets and Their Applications

Abstract

Graphene oxide (GO) is one of the graphene derivatives whose two-dimensional aromatic carbon monolayer structure attracted in various fields of science and engineering because of its unique electrical, optical, thermal and mechanical properties. The GO contains abundant oxygen-functional groups such as epoxy, hydroxyl, and carboxyl groups. These functional groups provide not only excellent colloidal stability in aqueous solutions but also anchoring sites for chemical modifications. In this study, we reported a facile approach for the creation of metal nanoparticles (metal NPs)/graphene nanocomposite. We used the mussel-inspired molecule, dopamine, to modify the surface of GO nanosheets and reduce the metal ions for the in situ growth of metal NPs on the surface of GO sheets. Dopamine functionalized GO (GO-Dopa) can make the Ag NPs by simply mixing without additional reducing agent or stabilizer at room temperature. We also demonstrated that the Ag/GO-Dopa exhibited high catalytic activity for the reduction of a series of nitroarenes.