Graphene has extraordinary mechanical strength and excellent thermal and electrical conductivity. With these merits, graphene has been an ideal reinforcement for high-performance metal matrix composites, attracting a great deal of attention.
In particular, graphene-reinforced Al matrix composites (AMCs) are superior to Cu-based composites and other various Al alloys due to their advantages such as high strength, high conductivity, light weight and low cost. In accordance with the desired terms, the optimal properties of graphene-reinforced AMCs are obtained by manipulating the content and dispersion of graphene layers. However, it still remains difficult to determine the optimal content and realize the uniform dispersion of graphene in the Al metal matrix.
Jon Sin Hyok, a researcher at the Faculty of Materials Science and Technology, in cooperation with some other researchers, has conducted a first-principles study of the interface binding nature, mechanical strength, and electronic properties of aluminum/graphene (Al/G) composites, using superlattice models with varying graphene content.
Their calculations have revealed the weak binding between Al and graphene layers with no new chemical bonding at the interface and the gradual decrease in binding strength with increasing graphene content.
You can find the details in his paper “Influence of interposed graphene sheets on mechanical and electronic properties of Al/graphene superlattice” in “Applied Physics Letters” (SCI).
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