Hierarchical Incorporation of Reduced Graphene Oxide into Anisotropic Cellulose Nanofiber Foams Improves Their Thermal Insulation

authored by: Seyed Ehsan Hadi, Elias Möller, Sina Nolte, Agnes Åhl, Olivier Donzel-Gargand, Lennart Bergström, Alexander Holm
Abstract: Anisotropic cellulose nanofiber (CNF) foams represent the state-of-the-art in renewable insulation. These foams consist of large (diameter >10 μm) uniaxially aligned macropores with mesoporous pore-walls and aligned CNF. The foams show anisotropic thermal conduction, where heat transports more efficiently in the axial direction (along the aligned CNF and macropores) than in the radial direction (perpendicular to the aligned CNF and macropores). Here we explore the impact on axial and radial thermal conductivity upon depositing a thin film of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) on the macropore walls in anisotropic CNF foams. To obtain rGO films on the foam walls we developed liquid-phase self-assembly to deposit rGO in a layer-by-layer fashion. Using electron and ion microscopy, we thoroughly characterized the resulting rGO-CNF foams and confirmed the successful deposition of rGO. These hierarchical rGO-CNF foams show lower radial thermal conductivity (λ_r) across a wide range of relative humidity compared to CNF control foams. Our work therefore demonstrates a potential method for improved thermal insulation in anisotropic CNF foams and introduces versatile self-assembly for postmodification of such foams.
Organisation(s): Institute of Inorganic Chemistry
External Organisation(s): Stockholm University
Philipps-Universität Marburg
Uppsala University
Linkoping University
Type: Article
Journal: ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces
Volume: 16
Pages: 45337–45346
No. of pages: 10
ISSN: 1944-8244
Publication date: 28.08.2024
Publication status: Published
Peer reviewed: Yes
ASJC Scopus subject areas: General Materials Science
Sustainable Development Goals: SDG 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy
Electronic version(s): https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.4c09654 (Access: Open)

BibTeX

@article{9d9024f230c94275b012dd6ed49ec542,
title = "Hierarchical Incorporation of Reduced Graphene Oxide into Anisotropic Cellulose Nanofiber Foams Improves Their Thermal Insulation",
abstract = "Anisotropic cellulose nanofiber (CNF) foams represent the state-of-the-art in renewable insulation. These foams consist of large (diameter >10 μm) uniaxially aligned macropores with mesoporous pore-walls and aligned CNF. The foams show anisotropic thermal conduction, where heat transports more efficiently in the axial direction (along the aligned CNF and macropores) than in the radial direction (perpendicular to the aligned CNF and macropores). Here we explore the impact on axial and radial thermal conductivity upon depositing a thin film of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) on the macropore walls in anisotropic CNF foams. To obtain rGO films on the foam walls we developed liquid-phase self-assembly to deposit rGO in a layer-by-layer fashion. Using electron and ion microscopy, we thoroughly characterized the resulting rGO-CNF foams and confirmed the successful deposition of rGO. These hierarchical rGO-CNF foams show lower radial thermal conductivity (λr) across a wide range of relative humidity compared to CNF control foams. Our work therefore demonstrates a potential method for improved thermal insulation in anisotropic CNF foams and introduces versatile self-assembly for postmodification of such foams.",
keywords = "cellulose nanofiber foam, CNF, insulation, layer-by-layer, reduced graphene oxide, self-assembly, thermal conductivity",
author = "Hadi, {Seyed Ehsan} and Elias M{\"o}ller and Sina Nolte and Agnes {\AA}hl and Olivier Donzel-Gargand and Lennart Bergstr{\"o}m and Alexander Holm",
note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2024 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.",
year = "2024",
month = aug,
day = "28",
doi = "10.1021/acsami.4c09654",
language = "English",
volume = "16",
pages = "45337–45346",
journal = "ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces",
issn = "1944-8244",
publisher = "American Chemical Society",
number = "34",
}