Unexpected colloid-like supernatant from liquid-phase ball-milling graphite using miscible solutions as solvents: a failure analysis

TL;DR

This study investigates unexpected colloid-like supernatants from liquid-phase ball-milling of graphite, revealing they are mainly impurities rather than graphene, challenging initial assumptions.

Contribution

It uncovers that colloid-like supernatants from graphite ball-milling in miscible solutions are primarily impurities, not graphene, providing new insights into the process outcomes.

Findings

Supernatants contained zirconia, silicate, and yttrium oxide impurities.

The colloid-like supernatants were not composed of nano-graphite.

Characterization techniques confirmed impurity composition.

Abstract

Ball-milling graphite was conducted in miscible solutions with the purpose to exfoliate graphene. Colloid-like stable supernatants were unexpectedly obtained. Followed were the characterizations with Scanning electronic microscopy, Thermogravimetric analysis, X-ray diffraction and Elemental dispersive X-ray mapping to recognize them. As a result, strongly against the initial judgments, the components of colloid were mainly impurities of mixture of zirconia, silicate and yttrium oxide, other than nano-graphite.