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Reduced graphene oxide (RGO)/TiO2 nanocomposite coating was synthesized using electrophoretic co-deposition (EPD) of graphene oxide and TiO2 colloidal suspension. Direct assembly by EPD facilitated the transformation from GO to RGO and resulted in RGO/TiO2 films on Cu substrate. The prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy. The obtained results proved the presence of titania nanoparticles and RGO planes in the nanocomposite coatings and the reduction of GO during EPD process. Methylene blue photodegradation experiments showed that the degradation efficiency and the reduction rate of the contact angle increased in nanocomposite coatings by 12% and 15%, respectively. There is a direct correlation between the amount of RGO in the coating and the improvement of the photocatalytic activity and wettability.
A large part of the cost of steel production in the world is related to the consumption of graphite electrodes. Electrode is the only material that maintains its electrical conductivity at high temperatures, and hence it is used as a conductor of electric current in EAF furnaces. Considering the high costs of graphite electrodes, any action that leads to reducing the consumption of graphite electrode can lead to increasing the productivity of steelmaking operations. In this study and as its novelty, the electrophoretic method was used to generate a ceramic coating for the protection of graphite electrodes. Electrophoretic deposition (EPD) is a two-step process in which charged particles suspended in a suspension move towards the oppositely charged electrode under the influence of an electric field which combine as a dense film on the surface. In the EPD technique, the particle size limit is not very important if a stable suspension is formed and micro and nano-sized particles can be used in this method. The numerical simulation of the thermal contour on the graphite electrode was done in ABAQUS software. Moreover, the surface morphology of graphite samples has been investigated via scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The created coating was a combination of Al2O3 and SiO2, which was placed on the surface of test samples by EPD treatment. The obtained results have the properties of resistance to thermal shock and show the increase in the life of coated graphite samples at different temperatures and times.
The graphene nanosheets have been deposited on silicon nanowires (SiNWs) at room temperature. SiNWs were grown by hot-wire chemical vapor process (HWCVP). A simple and room temperature approach known as electrophoretic deposition (EPD) process was adopted for the deposition of graphene sheets on SiNWs. GO sheets on SiNWs were converted to reduced graphene oxide (rGO) by photo-reduction method. EPD parameters were optimized to get a uniform coating of rGO on SiNWs. It was observed that the rGO deposition is greatly influenced by the deposition time and the applied voltage in the EPD process. rGO deposition was confirmed by FEG-SEM and FEG-TEM, and the reduction of GO to rGO was verified by Raman, UV–Vis and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy.