The influence of three different intercalation techniques on the microstructure of exfoliated graphite

All three methods delivered graphite nanoplatelets with a very high aspect ratio through considerable expansion. Surprisingly the gas phase method caused persistent residual damage. All three methods yielded a product with varying levels of basal and edge damage, but the purified Hummers material exhibited marginally more 'ideal' characteristics. The simplest but still effective technique was found to be the electrochemical approach.