Synthesis and Solid-State NMR Structural Characterization of 13 C-Labeled Graphite Oxide
Weiwei Cai, Richard D. Piner, Frank J. Stadermann, Sungjin Park, Medhat A. Shaibat, Yoshitaka Ishii, Dongxing Yang, Aruna Velamakanni, Sung Jin An, Meryl Stoller, Jinho An, Dongmin Chen, Rodney S. Ruoff- Multidisciplinary
The detailed chemical structure of graphite oxide (GO), a layered material prepared from graphite almost 150 years ago and a precursor to chemically modified graphenes, has not been previously resolved because of the pseudo-random chemical functionalization of each layer, as well as variations in exact composition. Carbon-13 ( 13 C) solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (SSNMR) spectra of GO for natural abundance 13 C have poor signal-to-noise ratios. Approximately 100% 13 C-labeled graphite was made and converted to 13 C-labeled GO, and 13 C SSNMR was used to reveal details of the chemical bonding network, including the chemical groups and their connections. Carbon-13–labeled graphite can be used to prepare chemically modified graphenes for 13 C SSNMR analysis with enhanced sensitivity and for fundamental studies of 13 C-labeled graphite and graphene.