Carbon nanotubes meet graphene oxide: Efficient removal of chemisorbed water for enhanced electrode materials

Abstract

Self-assembled graphene oxide (GO) papers are of increased interest for filtration, sensing and energy storage applications . The performance of the paper assemblies, especially upon thermal reduction treatments, is seriously affected by the presence of chemisorbed water, i.e. water molecules inherently bound to the oxygen functional groups (OFGs) of GO. In this work we show that oxidized multiwall carbon nanotubes (oCNTs) self-assembled onto GO sheets by an in-situ exfoliation process effectively can remove chemisorbed water and significantly reduce associated damaging effects.