# Water Transport Dynamics and Kinetic Equilibria in Nanoblisters at the Graphene–Mica Interface

## TL;DR

This paper studies how water moves and reaches equilibrium in nanoblisters formed at the graphene–mica interface under mild heating.

## Contribution

The study reveals kinetic trapping effects and equilibrium trends of water intercalation in graphene nanoblisters during thermal annealing.

## Key findings

- Water readily intercalates into graphene–mica nanoblisters under mild annealing conditions.
- Nanoblister volumes stabilize after 2 hours of annealing, showing an equilibrium trend.
- Higher temperatures promote graphene contraction and increased water accommodation.

## Abstract

Nanoscale reduced
volumes with novel properties can be produced
from 2D materials like graphene. Mild thermal annealing imposes vast
and varied amounts of water intercalation into the graphene–mica
interface, resulting in the formation of nanoblisters and impacting
the local environment for applications such as reactions confined
at the solid–solid interface. Atomic force microscopy imaging
(AFM) and micro-Fourier transform infrared (micro-FTIR) spectroscopy
characterization after 60–120 °C anneals revealed large
volumes of water readily intercalate into graphene–mica nanoblisters,
elucidating water transport behavior under mild reaction conditions.
The inflation and deflation of graphene nanoblisters throughout the
annealing process is attributed to the contraction of the graphene
capping layer upon cooling from the annealing temperature, due to
the independence of nanoblister aspect ratios from nanoblister volume
or surface area. The intercalated water volume was estimated by the
distended volumes of each nanoblister and exhibit an equilibrium trend
established after 2 h of annealing. This water equilibrium occurs
at a variety of temperatures, but higher temperatures favor graphene
contraction and distention to accommodate larger volumes of water.
Nanoblister volumes are set during the cooling process, indicating
a kinetic trapping effect that can influence physical properties and
reactivity for all systems confined at the graphene–mica interface.