Polydimethylsiloxane Composite Sponge Decorated with Graphene/Carbon Nanotube via Polydopamine for Multifunctional Applications

Recently, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-based porous materialshavebeen regarded as ideal candidates in various applications. We createda PDMS composite sponge decorated with reduced graphene oxide (rGO)/carbonnanotube (CNT) fillers via polydopamine (PDA). Specifically, a manufacturedPDMS sponge was prepared by a sacrificial template approach and thenPDA was decorated on a network of PDMS sponges by dopamine self-polymerization.PDA tightly and firmly attached to the PDMS sponge skeleton, whichmakes the superhydrophobic PDMS sponge hydrophilic providing adsorptionsites for rGO and CNT fillers; thus, the compatibility between fillersand the PDMS matrix was improved. The developed rGO-CNT/PDA@PDMS compositesponge exhibited excellent sensing characteristics, photothermal effect,and superwettability simultaneously. The rGO-CNT/PDA@PDMS-based sensorhas a wide strain range (0-60%), high sensitivity (GF = 2.13),and stability (500 loading/unloading cycles). Additionally, rGO-CNT/PDA@PDMSexhibits excellent oil-water separation performance and high-efficiencyabsorption of oils. Simultaneously, the rGO-CNT/PDA@PDMS sponge wasalso proved to possess good photothermal conversion performance. Therefore,the environmentally friendly and multifunctional rGO-CNT/PDA@PDMScomposite sponge exhibits superior potential for application in flexibleintelligent wearable devices, oily wastewater, and seawater desalination.