One-step conversion of biomass to reduced graphene oxide at room temperature

Although graphene and graphene-related two-dimensional materials (GR2Ms) hold much potential for various applications, the current methods for their large-scale production rely heavily on graphite minerals and energy-intensive techniques. Here we report a one-step dehydration–condensation method for the economical and green preparation of GR2Ms on a gram scale from biomass at room temperature under atmospheric pressure using only concentrated sulfuric acid. This protocol has been applied successfully to various types of biomass and carbohydrates, delivering a 33% mass yield of GR2M product. The properties of the product are consistent with those of classical reduced graphene oxide (RGO), with the twist that it does not need to be produced from graphite minerals. The mild reaction conditions substantially reduce the energy input, while providing a facile platform for monitoring the kinetics of RGO nucleation and growth. Compared with conventional methods, a 98% reduction in energy consumption is achieved. Overall, the results of this research pave a new avenue to scalable and sustainable GR2M production. Reduced graphene oxide materials are of great interest in many fields, but current production methods are neither sustainable nor scalable. Here the authors report a method that enables the facile production of reduced graphene oxide from biomass at ambient temperature.