Low-temperature synthesis of few-layer graphene

Few-layer graphene was synthesized at 95 degrees C by the Ullmann reaction using acetylene as the raw material. Hexabromobenzene (HBB) and cuprous bromide were used as the catalyst in this reaction. A contrast experiment performed without HBB also confirmed this point. The resulting material was characterized by Raman spectroscopy and exhibited characteristic peaks of graphene. Moreover, the structure of the as-prepared material was confirmed as few-layer graphene by transmission electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and solid-state C-13 nuclear magnetic resonance spectra. The synthesized graphene used as the anode of lithium-ion battery exhibited the initial and reversible capacities of 650 and 570 mAh g(-1) respectively, which in accordance with the theoretical capacity of graphene. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.