Plastic-Swelling Preparation of Functional Graphene Aerogel Fiber Textiles

Graphene aerogel fibers (GAFs) combine the advantages of lightweight, high specific strength and conductivity of graphene, showing great potential in multifunctional wearable textiles. However, the fabrication and application of GAF textiles are considerably limited by the low structural robustness of GAF. Here, we report a plastic-swelling method to fabricate GAF textiles with high performance and multi-functionalities. GAF textiles were achieved by plastic-swelling, the prewoven graphene oxide fiber (GOF) tow textiles. This near-solid plastic-swelling process allows GAFs in textiles to maintain high structural order and controllable density, and exhibit record-high tensile strength up to 103 MPa and electrical conductivity up to 1.06 × 10⁴ S m⁻¹ at the density of 0.4 g cm⁻³. GAF textiles exhibit high strength of 113 MPa, multiple electrical and thermal functions, and high porosity to serve as host materials for more functional guests. The plastic-swelling provides a general strategy to fabricate diverse aerogel fiber textiles, paving the road for their realistic application.

Graphical Abstract