Aqueous Colloidal Stability of Graphene Oxide and Chemically Converted Graphene

Graphene oxide (GO) was prepared by modified Hummer’s method, and chemically converted graphene (CCG) was prepared by further reduction of the aqueous GO colloid. The effect of pH on particle size, particle charge, and light absorption of the aqueous colloids of GO and CCG was studied with titration against HCl or NaOH, to find the ideal characteristics for a stable dispersion. The GO colloid was stable in the pH range of 4–11, whereas the CCG colloid gained stability at a relatively narrower pH range of 7–10. Poor stability of the colloids was observed for both GO and CCG colloids at both extremes of the pH scale. Both of the colloids exhibited average size of ~1 micron in the low pH range, whereas for higher pH the size ranged between 300 and 500 nm. The UV-Vis spectra showed absorption peak at 230 nm for GO colloids that shifted to 260 nm for the CCG colloid. Such shift can be ascribed to restoring of electronic conjugation of the C=C bonds in CCG.