Surfactant mediated liquid phase exfoliation of graphene

Abstract

Commercialization of graphene based applications inevitably requires cost effective mass production. From the early days of research on graphene, direct liquid phase exfoliation (LPE) of graphite has been considered as the most promising strategy to produce high-quality mono or few-layer graphene sheets in solvent dispersion forms. Substantial success has been achieved thus far in the LPE of graphene employing numerous solvent systems and suitable surfactants. This invited review article principally showcase the recent research progress as well as shortcomings of surfactant assisted LPE of graphene. In particular, a comprehensive assessment of the quality and yield of the graphene sheets produced by different categories of the surfactants are summarized. Future direction of LPE methods is also proposed for the eventual success of commercial applications.