The research team of Prof. Chao Gao, from DPSE of ZJU, recently reported a new kind of artificial nacre-mimic fiber with superior electrical conductivity and outstanding corrosion-resistance. This finding was published in Scientific Reports, an on-line open-access journal of Nature Publication Group, on Oct 24th.
This new fiber was made of graphene and some organic polymer materials.
Graphene, of high strength and excellent conductivity, is the thinnest material yet we have known. Prof. Andre Geim and Dr. Kostya Novoselov at Manchester University were awarded the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics for their work on graphene in 2004, in which they managed to extract single-atom-thick graphene from bulk graphite.
Given its widespread applications in transistors, transparent electrodes, nanocomposites, lithium-ion battery, super capacitors and other prospecting fields, scientists cherish highly expectations for graphene. Moreover, the excellent features of graphene contribute to the miraculous properties of the new fiber.
The magic of the new fiber not only lies in its properties, but also in its nacre-mimic structure.
“Nature is magical. Nacre, with a peculiar structure, is one of its masterpieces. For instance, the shell of pearl mussels consists of more than 95% calcium carbonate and a small amount of natural organic polymer. Its microscopic architecture is recognized as ''brick-and-mortar'' layered structure by scientists, which is constituted of highly aligned rigid CaCO3 platelets surrounded by elastic organic glue layers.” Said Prof. Chao Gao.
Materials of "brick-and-mortar" structure are rigid and elastic, with higher strength than plastic and better flexibility than steel and ceramics, leading to its wide promising applications. Scientists are quite interested in this new material and numerous efforts have been addressed to mimic this structure since 20 years ago. However, only films and papers with limited size (cm scale) of nacre mimics have been accessed before.
Invented by the team of Prof. Chao Gao, the fiber, just like the nacre, has "brick-and-mortar" structure constituent of alternating graphene sheets and organic layers. Although it’s thin and tiny, the fiber can be fabricated into a long string. The peculiar material and structure endue the composites with ideal strength and elasticity, good conductivity, acid and alkali resistance, as well as water-soaking resistance.
This special fiber has a wide range of applications, such as antistatic and radiation-proof clothes. Owing to its light weight, body armor made from the fiber can be ultraportable. Furthermore, it can be produced under room temperature with low energy cost.
At present, more efforts from the research team of Prof. Chao Gao are being made to improve the strength and elasticity of the fiber. "Maybe one day in the future, we could eject liquid that promptly coagulates into strong fiber and float around skyscrapers, just like the spider man." said Prof. Chao Gao.
(By Si Lu) |
