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Graphene and Other 2D Layered Nanomaterial-Based Films: Synthesis, Properties and Applications

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A special issue of Coatings (ISSN 2079-6412).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2017) | Viewed by 77279

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Federico Cesano

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Guest Editor

Department of Chemistry, Turin University, 10125 Torino, Italy
Interests: composite/hybrid materials and nanomaterials; surface Science; microscopies and spectroscopies; catalysis and photocatalysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Domenica Scarano

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Guest Editor

Department of Chemistry, University of Torino, Via P. Giuria, 7, 10125 Torino, Italy
Interests: 2D materials; carbons; oxides; polymers and their composite/hybrid materials and nanomaterials; piezoelectric and piezoresistive materials; functional materials; magnetic materials; interface and surface properties; microscopies and spectroscopies; electrical properties
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The Special Issue is dedicated to highlighting relevant advances in the field of coatings based on two-dimensional layered nanomaterials. Graphene and a variety of new 2D inorganic nanosystems, called "graphene-analogues" due to their layered structure (i.e., transition metal dichalcogenides such as MoS₂, transition metal oxide, g-C₃N₄, BN, layered titanates), have all attracted tremendous interest due to their unprecedented properties/superior performance and they can find applications in many fields, from electronics to biotechnology. As far as the field of coatings is concerned, the new layered nanostructures may offer unique and multifunctional properties, including gas-barrier; lubricant; conductive; magnetic; photoactive; self-cleaning; and/or antimicrobial surfaces. This Special Issue aims to publish findings on the synthesis, and to unravel the properties and perspectives of multifunctional films that are at the forefront of science and coating technologies.

It is of great importance to share current knowledge and all progress in these subjects to stimulate new ideas.

In particular, the topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the preparation, properties and applications of coatings and nanocomposite films containing:

graphene,
graphene-like systems (few-layer graphene, graphene oxide),
graphene-analogues (transition metal dichalcogenides, such as MoS₂, and WS₂),
other inorganic 2D structures (layered titanates).

Prof. Dr. Federico Cesano
Prof. Dr. Domenica Scarano
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Coatings is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Published Papers (12 papers)

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Editorial

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4 pages, 192 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Graphene and Other 2D Layered Hybrid Nanomaterial-Based Films: Synthesis, Properties, and Applications

by Federico Cesano and Domenica Scarano

Coatings 2018, 8(12), 419; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings8120419 - 23 Nov 2018

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2814

Abstract

This Special Issue contains a series of reviews and research articles demonstrating actual perspectives and future trends of 2D-based materials for the generation of functional films, coatings, and hybrid interfaces with controlled morphology and structure. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene and Other 2D Layered Nanomaterial-Based Films: Synthesis, Properties and Applications)

Research

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11 pages, 4774 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of Electrode Coating with Graphene Suspension on Power Generation of Microbial Fuel Cells

by Hung-Yin Tsai, Wei-Hsuan Hsu and Yi-Jhu Liao

Coatings 2018, 8(7), 243; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings8070243 - 10 Jul 2018

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 5038

Abstract

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs), which can generate low-pollution power through microbial decomposition, are a potentially vital technology with applications in environmental protection and energy recovery. The electrode materials used in MFCs are crucial determinants of their capacity to generate electricity. In this study, we proposed an electrode surface modification method to enhance the bacterial adhesion and increase the power generation in MFCs. Graphene suspension (GS) is selected as modifying reagent, and thin films of graphene are fabricated on an electrode substrate by spin-coating. Application of this method makes it easy to control the thickness of graphene film. Moreover, the method has the advantage of low cost and large-area fabrication. To understand the practicality of the method, the effects of the number of coating layers and drying temperature of the graphene films on the MFCs’ performance levels are investigated. The results indicate that when the baking temperature is increased from 150 to 325 °C, MFC power generation can increase approximately 4.5 times. Besides, the maximum power density of MFCs equipped with a four-layer graphene anode is approximately four times that of MFCs equipped with a two-layer graphene anode. An increase in baking temperature or number of coating layers of graphene films enhances the performance of MFC power generation. The reason can be attributed to the graphene purity and amount of graphene adhering to the surface of electrode. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene and Other 2D Layered Nanomaterial-Based Films: Synthesis, Properties and Applications)

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Graphical abstract

8 pages, 1549 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Preparation and Photoluminescence of Tungsten Disulfide Monolayer

by Yanfei Lv, Feng Huang, Luxi Zhang, Jiaxin Weng, Shichao Zhao and Zhenguo Ji

Coatings 2018, 8(6), 205; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings8060205 - 30 May 2018

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 5589

Abstract

Tungsten disulfide (WS₂) monolayer is a direct band gap semiconductor. The growth of WS₂ monolayer hinders the progress of its investigation. In this paper, we prepared the WS₂ monolayer through chemical vapor transport deposition. This method makes it easier for the growth of WS₂ monolayer through the heterogeneous nucleation-and-growth process. The crystal defects introduced by the heterogeneous nucleation could promote the photoluminescence (PL) emission. We observed the strong photoluminescence emission in the WS₂ monolayer, as well as thermal quenching, and the PL energy redshift as the temperature increases. We attribute the thermal quenching to the energy or charge transfer of the excitons. The redshift is related to the dipole moment of WS₂. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene and Other 2D Layered Nanomaterial-Based Films: Synthesis, Properties and Applications)

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9 pages, 2862 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Chemical Vapor Transport Deposition of Molybdenum Disulfide Layers Using H₂O Vapor as the Transport Agent

by Shichao Zhao, Jiaxin Weng, Shengzhong Jin, Yanfei Lv and Zhenguo Ji

Coatings 2018, 8(2), 78; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings8020078 - 21 Feb 2018

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 6703

Abstract

Molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) layers show excellent optical and electrical properties and have many potential applications. However, the growth of high-quality MoS₂ layers is a major bottleneck in the development of MoS₂-based devices. In this paper, we report a chemical vapor transport deposition method to investigate the growth behavior of monolayer/multi-layer MoS₂ using water (H₂O) as the transport agent. It was shown that the introduction of H₂O vapor promoted the growth of MoS₂ by increasing the nucleation density and continuous monolayer growth. Moreover, the growth mechanism is discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene and Other 2D Layered Nanomaterial-Based Films: Synthesis, Properties and Applications)

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9 pages, 9007 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evaluation of the Scaffolding Effect of Pt Nanowires Supported on Reduced Graphene Oxide in PEMFC Electrodes

by Peter Mardle, Oliver Fernihough and Shangfeng Du

Coatings 2018, 8(2), 48; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings8020048 - 25 Jan 2018

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 4384

Abstract

The stacking and overlapping effect of two-dimensional (2D) graphene nanosheets in the catalyst coating layer is a big challenge for their practical application in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). These effects hinder the effective transfer of reactant gases to reach the active catalytic sites on catalysts supported on the graphene surface and the removal of the produced water, finally leading to large mass transfer resistances in practical electrodes and poor power performance. In this work, we evaluate the catalytic power performance of aligned Pt nanowires grown on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) (PtNW/rGO) as cathodes in 16-cm² single PEMFCs. The results are compared to Pt nanoparticles deposited on rGO (Pt/rGO) and commercial Pt/C nanoparticle catalysts. It is found that the scaffolding effect from the aligned Pt nanowire structure reduces the mass transfer resistance in rGO-based catalyst electrodes, and a nearly double power performance is achieved as compared with the Pt/rGO electrodes. However, although a higher mass activity was observed for PtNW/rGO in membrane electrode assembly (MEA) measurement, the power performance obtained at a large current density region is still lower than the Pt/C in PEMFCs because of the stacking effect of rGO. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene and Other 2D Layered Nanomaterial-Based Films: Synthesis, Properties and Applications)

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13 pages, 4490 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Synthesis, Characterization, and Application of Novel Ni-P-Carbon Nitride Nanocomposites

by Eman M. Fayyad, Aboubakr M. Abdullah, Mohammad K. Hassan, Adel M. Mohamed, Chuhong Wang, George Jarjoura and Zoheir Farhat

Coatings 2018, 8(1), 37; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings8010037 - 17 Jan 2018

Cited by 30 | Viewed by 5376

Abstract

Dispersion of 2D carbon nitride (C₃N₄) nanosheets into a nickel phosphorous (NiP) matrix was successfully achieved by ultrasonication during the electroless plating of NiP from an acidic bath. The morphology and thickness, elemental analysis, phases, roughness, and wettability for as-plated and heat-treated nanocomposite were determined by scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, and contact angle measurements, respectively. C₃N₄ showed a homogeneous distribution morphology in the nanocomposite that changed from amorphous in case of the NiP to a mixed crystalline-amorphous structure in the NiP-C₃N₄ nanocomposite. The microhardness and corrosion resistance of the as-plated nanocomposite and the heat-treated nanocomposite coating were significantly enhanced compared to the Ni-P. The nanocomposite showed a superior corrosion protection efficiency of ~95%, as observed from the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements. On the other hand, the microhardness of the nanocomposite was significantly increased from 780 to reach 1175 HV₂₀₀ for NiP and NiP-C₃N₄, respectively. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene and Other 2D Layered Nanomaterial-Based Films: Synthesis, Properties and Applications)

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1539 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Photovoltaic Effect in Graphene/MoS₂/Si Van der Waals Heterostructures

by Weilin Shi and Xiying Ma

Coatings 2018, 8(1), 2; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings8010002 - 21 Dec 2017

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 5539

Abstract

This paper presents a study on the photovoltaic effect of a graphene/MoS₂/Si double heterostructure, grown by rapid chemical vapor deposition. It was found that the double junctions of the graphene/MoS₂ Schottky junction and the MoS₂/Si heterostructure played important roles in enhancing the device’s performance. They allowed more electron-hole pairs to be efficiently generated, separated, and collected in the graphene/MoS₂/Si double interface. The device demonstrated an open circuit voltage of 0.51 V and an energy conversion efficiency of 2.58% under an optical illumination of 500 mW/cm². The photovoltaic effect of the device was partly attributed to the strong light absorption and photoresponse of the few-layer MoS₂ film, and partly ascribed to the high carrier-collection-rate of the double van der Waals heterostructures (vdWHs) in the device. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene and Other 2D Layered Nanomaterial-Based Films: Synthesis, Properties and Applications)

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2806 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Contamination-Free Graphene Transfer from Cu-Foil and Cu-Thin-Film/Sapphire

by Jaeyeong Lee, Shinyoung Lee and Hak Ki Yu

Coatings 2017, 7(12), 218; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings7120218 - 02 Dec 2017

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 9403

Abstract

The separation of graphene grown on metallic catalyst by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is essential for device applications. The transfer techniques of graphene from metallic catalyst to target substrate usually use the chemical etching method to dissolve the metallic catalyst. However, this causes not only high material cost but also environmental contamination in large-scale fabrication. We report a bubble transfer method to transfer graphene films to arbitrary substrate, which is nondestructive to both the graphene and the metallic catalyst. In addition, we report a type of metallic catalyst, which is 700 nm of Cu on sapphire substrate, which is hard enough to endure against any procedure in graphene growth and transfer. With the Cr adhesion layer between sapphire and Cu film, electrochemically delaminated graphene shows great quality during several growth cycles. The electrochemical bubble transfer method can offer high cost efficiency, little contamination and environmental advantages. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene and Other 2D Layered Nanomaterial-Based Films: Synthesis, Properties and Applications)

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2678 KiB

Open AccessCommunication

Enhanced Efficiency of Dye-Sensitized Solar Counter Electrodes Consisting of Two-Dimensional Nanostructural Molybdenum Disulfide Nanosheets Supported Pt Nanoparticles

by Chao-Kuang Cheng, Jeng-Yu Lin, Kai-Chen Huang, Tsung-Kuang Yeh and Chien-Kuo Hsieh

Coatings 2017, 7(10), 167; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings7100167 - 13 Oct 2017

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 5047

Abstract

This paper reports architecturally designed nanocomposites synthesized by hybridizing the two-dimensional (2D) nanostructure of molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) nanosheet (NS)-supported Pt nanoparticles (PtNPs) as counter electrodes (CEs) for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). MoS₂ NSs were prepared using the hydrothermal method; PtNPs were subsequently reduced on the MoS₂ NSs via the water–ethylene method to form PtNPs/MoS₂ NSs hybrids. The nanostructures and chemical states of the PtNPs/MoS₂ NSs hybrids were characterized by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Detailed electrochemical characterizations by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, cyclic voltammetry, and Tafel-polarization measurement demonstrated that the PtNPs/MoS₂ NSs exhibited excellent electrocatalytic activities, afforded a higher charge transfer rate, a decreased charge transfer resistance, and an improved exchange current density. The PtNPs/MoS₂ NSs hybrids not only provided the exposed layers of 2D MoS₂ NSs with a great deal of catalytically active sites, but also offered PtNPs anchored on the MoS₂ NSs enhanced I₃⁻ reduction. Accordingly, the DSSCs that incorporated PtNPs/MoS₂ NSs CE exhibited an outstanding photovoltaic conversion efficiency (PCE) of 7.52%, which was 8.7% higher than that of a device with conventional thermally-deposited platinum CE (PCE = 6.92%). Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene and Other 2D Layered Nanomaterial-Based Films: Synthesis, Properties and Applications)

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Review

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14 pages, 3206 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

2D Materials-Coated Plasmonic Structures for SERS Applications

by Ming Xia

Coatings 2018, 8(4), 137; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings8040137 - 12 Apr 2018

Cited by 26 | Viewed by 7934

Abstract

Two-dimensional (2D) materials, such as graphene and hexagonal boron nitride, are new kinds of materials that can serve as substrates for surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). When combined with traditional metallic plasmonic structures, the hybrid 2D materials/metal SERS platform brings extra benefits, including higher SERS enhancement factors, oxidation protection of the metal surface, and protection of molecules from photo-induced damages. This review paper gives an overview of recent progress in the 2D materials-coated plasmonic structure in SERS application, focusing on the fabrication of the hybrid 2D materials/metal SERS platform and its applications for Raman enhancement. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene and Other 2D Layered Nanomaterial-Based Films: Synthesis, Properties and Applications)

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17 pages, 4194 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

Recent Advances in Graphene-Based Free-Standing Films for Thermal Management: Synthesis, Properties, and Applications

by Feng Gong, Hao Li, Wenbin Wang, Dawei Xia, Qiming Liu, Dimitrios V. Papavassiliou and Ziqiang Xu

Coatings 2018, 8(2), 63; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings8020063 - 07 Feb 2018

Cited by 41 | Viewed by 9054

Abstract

Thermal management in microelectronic devices has become a crucial issue as the devices are more and more integrated into micro-devices. Recently, free-standing graphene films (GFs) with outstanding thermal conductivity, superb mechanical strength, and low bulk density, have been regarded as promising materials for heat dissipation and for use as thermal interfacial materials in microelectronic devices. Recent studies on free-standing GFs obtained via various approaches are reviewed here. Special attention is paid to their synthesis method, thermal conductivity, and potential applications. In addition, the most important factors that affect the thermal conductivity are outlined and discussed. The scope is to provide a clear overview that researchers can adopt when fabricating GFs with improved thermal conductivity and a large area for industrial applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene and Other 2D Layered Nanomaterial-Based Films: Synthesis, Properties and Applications)

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16 pages, 5701 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

Thermal Growth of Graphene: A Review

by Hai Tan, Deguo Wang and Yanbao Guo

Coatings 2018, 8(1), 40; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings8010040 - 19 Jan 2018

Cited by 49 | Viewed by 9216

Abstract

A common belief proposed by Peierls and Landau that two-dimensional material cannot exist freely in a three-dimensional world has been proved false when graphene was first synthesized in 2004. Graphene, which is the base structure of other carbon materials, has drawn much attention of scholars and researchers due to its extraordinary electrical, mechanical and thermal properties. Moreover, methods for its synthesis have developed greatly in recent years. This review focuses on the mechanism of the thermal growth method and the different synthesis methods, where epitaxial growth, chemical vapor deposition, plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition and combustion are discussed in detail based on this mechanism. Meanwhile, to improve the quality and control the number of graphene layers, the latest research progress in optimizing growth parameters and developmental technologies has been summarized. The strategies for synthesizing high-quality and large-scale graphene are proposed and an outlook on the future synthesis direction is also provided. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene and Other 2D Layered Nanomaterial-Based Films: Synthesis, Properties and Applications)

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