Preparation of Graphene-Coated Aluminum Composite Powder by Dispersing Graphene Aerosol Through Electrical Explosion

A new method to produce graphene-coated aluminum composite powder by graphene aerosol prepared by electrical explosion was proposed. This method solves the problems of uneven dispersion and weak interfacial bonding of graphene in the metal composite powder without damaging the intrinsic properties of graphene. The graphene aerosol of specific content was prepared by the electrical explosion, and the obtained graphene had two structures, namely the flake graphene and the gel graphene. The graphene had 5. 8 layers, and the graphene aerosol was uniformly dispersed in the chamber. Then, the graphene aerosols were mixed with spherical aluminum particles by stirring under the air flow, and the graphene-coated aluminum composite powders with different graphene contents were prepared. When the content of graphene aerosol is 1.5wt%, the graphene is uniformly dispersed in the aluminum composite powder and the graphene sheets adhere to the metal particles. Finally, the mechanism of in-situ formation of graphene-coated metal composite powder by dispersing of graphene aerosols was analyzed.