Derivatives of Sri Lankan Vein Graphite: Atomic Scale Study of Graphene Oxide and Reduced Graphene Oxide

The present study examines the atomic-scale structures of Graphene Oxide (GO) and Reduced Graphene Oxide (RGO). Electron microscopic studies on Sri Lankan vein graphite are considerably less; hence, this study focuses on the atomic-scale study of Sri Lankan vein graphite, using advanced electron microscopic techniques. The purpose of this research is to utilize the data obtained to explore the multidisciplinary characteristics of graphene to the maximum prospectively. We report an atomic-scale study on Sri Lankan vein graphite (purest) derivatives using advanced electron microscopic techniques, including High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscope (HRTEM), Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope (STEM), and Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy (EELS). The present study examines the atomic-scale structures of Graphene Oxide (GO) and Reduced Graphene Oxide (RGO). The results obtained exhibited an inter-atomic layer distance of 3.54 Å for RGO. The EELS study performed with the electron dose optimization for GO and RGO distinguished the differences in the C K edge with the oxygen functionalities. The XPS study confirmed the changes in oxygen functionalities obtained with EELS. The advanced electron microscopic techniques and other molecular spectroscopic analysis techniques allowed us to obtain a comprehensive study on Sri Lankan vein graphene-based structural and chemical features on an atomic scale.