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[[Vol. 9]3D Strutted-Graphene by a Sugar Blowing Method_ WPI-MANA.pdf](https://mdr.nims.go.jp/filesets/b13efc95-cb9e-4a19-bba9-9bebf5655861/download)

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International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (WPI-MANA)

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[[Research Highlights Vol.9] 3D Strutted-Graphene by a Sugar Blowing Method](https://mdr.nims.go.jp/datasets/34425a76-57e5-42fa-a293-375eb01038c7)

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2022/04/04 10:26 3D Strutted-Graphene by a Sugar Blowing Method| MANAhttps://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/vol9.html 1/2Previous  Index  NextResearch Highlights[Vol. 9]3D Strutted-Graphene by a Sugar Blowing Method24 Jan, 2014Robust, highly conductive 3D graphene structures for use in super-capacitors, through a method inspired by blown sugar, created.Figure : Scanning electron microscopy images for showing sugar blowing process:glucose were polymerized and blown by released ammonia into melanoidin bubbles inheating, which bubbles were finally converted into strutted graphene containingmono-/few-layered graphene membranes and graphitic struts.Graphene sheets are immensely strong, lightweight and excellent at conducting electricity.Theoretically, macroscopical three-dimensional graphene assemblies should retain the properties ofnanoscale graphene flakes. However, recent attempts to make 3D graphene have resulted in weakconductivity due to poor contact between graphene sheets. Loss of strength is also a problem, andself-supporting 3D graphene has not yet been produced.Now, Xuebin Wang and Yoshio Bando at Japan’s World Premier International Center for MaterialsNanoarchitectonics (WPI-MANA), together with co-workers across Japan and China, have created anew way of making 3D graphene using bubbles blown in a melt polymeric glucose. The resulting3D graphene is robust and maintains excellent conductivity.Inspired by the ancient food art of ‘blown sugar’, Bando and his team reasoned that the strutted,coherent nature of conjoined bubbles would lend itself to strength and conductivity if graphenecould be structured in the same way. The researchers created a syrup of ordinary sugar andammonium chloride. They heated the syrup, generating a glucose-based polymer calledmelanoidin, which was then blown into bubbles using gases released by the ammonium. The teamfound the best quality end-product resulted from a balance of equal ammonium decomposition andglucose polymerization during this stage.As the bubbles grew, the remaining syrup drained out of the bubble walls, leaving withinintersections of three bubbles. Under further heating, deoxidization and dehydrogenation, themelanoidin gradually graphitized to form ‘strutted graphene’: a coherent 3D structure made up ofgraphene membranes linked by graphene strut frameworks, which resulted from original bubblewalls and intersectional skeletons respectively.https://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/vol8.htmlhttps://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/index.htmlhttps://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/vol10.html2022/04/04 10:26 3D Strutted-Graphene by a Sugar Blowing Method| MANAhttps://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/vol9.html 2/2The bubble structure allows free movement of electrons throughout the network, meaning that thegraphene retains full conductivity. Not only this, but the mechanical strength and elasticity of the3D graphene is extraordinary robust – the team were able to compress it down to 80% of itsoriginal size with little loss of conductive properties or stability.Following their discovery, Bando and his team reliably produced gram-level strutted 3D graphenewith a cost $0.5 per gram in their lab. The low-cost, high scalability of this new method could havemany applications in engineering and electronics. Selectively the abundant product was applied asa highly effective super-capacitor; its maximum-power-density is highest among 3D graphene-based aqueous super-capacitors, ca. 10^6 W/kg. This illuminates an amazing future for quickstart-up of electric vehicles and launching of aircrafts.Reference"Three-dimensional strutted graphene grown by substrate-free sugar blowing for high-power-density supercapacitors. Nature Communications"Xuebin Wang, Yuanjian Zhang, Chunyi Zhi, Xi Wang, Daiming Tang, Yibin Xu, Qunhong Weng,Xiangfen Jiang, Masanori Mitome, Dmitri Golberg , and Yoshio BandoJournal : Nature Communications 4:2905 (2013).DOI : 10.1038/ncomms3905AffiliationsInternational Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (WPI-MANA), National Institute for MaterialsScience (NIMS), Namiki 1-1, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044, JapanContact informationInternational Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics(WPI-MANA)National Institute for Materials Science1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044 JapanPhone: +81-29-860-4710E-mail: mana-pr[AT]ml.nims.go.jphttps://samurai.nims.go.jp/profiles/tang_daiming?locale=enhttps://samurai.nims.go.jp/profiles/bando_yoshio?locale=enhttps://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms3905