# Functionalised graphene and 3D forms

> Graphene chemistry and architecture in six panels: covalent nitrophenyl groups, fluorographene and noncovalent pyrenebutyrate on the sheet, and graphene foam grown on nickel, a graphene aerogel and crumpled graphene balls in 3D.

- Page: https://www.labcanvas.com/templates/graphene-research/functionalised-graphene-3d-forms
- Open in the LabCanvas editor (LabCanvas account): https://www.labcanvas.com/editor.html?template=functionalised-graphene-3d-forms
- Updated: 2026-10-14
- Category: Graphene research
- Method: Functionalisation
- Starting materials: Graphene, graphene oxide, nickel foam template
- Product: Functionalised sheets and 3D graphene materials
- Key result: Sheets and molecules drawn in 3D at real proportions: the C–C bond 1.42 Å, molecules built from their SMILES; foams, gels and balls are drawn schematically and not to scale
- Figure: 1920 × 1080 px, 43 editable layers (6 generated objects with settings)

## Steps

1. **Covalent: aryl groups**: Nitrophenyl groups added to the surface by covalent C–C bonds (Bekyarova et al. 2009)
2. **Fluorographene**: A fluorine atom on every carbon (Nair et al. 2010)
3. **Noncovalent: π stacking**: Pyrenebutyrate stacked on the sheet, a noncovalent functionalisation that makes the sheets water-soluble (Xu et al. 2008); flat aromatic molecules drawn 3.35 Å above the sheet
4. **Graphene foam**: Template-directed CVD coats the struts of nickel foam with graphene; with the nickel etched away an interconnected, flexible graphene network remains (Chen et al. 2011)
5. **Aerogel**: GO sheets cross-linked by sol–gel chemistry, supercritically dried and thermally reduced (Worsley et al. 2010)
6. **Crumpled balls**: Made by capillary compression in rapidly evaporating aerosol droplets; held by folded, π–π stacked ridges (Luo et al. 2011)

## Strengths

- Covalent groups anchor firmly; noncovalent ones leave the lattice intact
- 3D forms keep graphene’s surface accessible in a bulk material

## Limitations

- Covalent bonding turns sp² carbons into sp³
- Pore sizes and densities of the 3D forms are drawn, not measured

## Uses

- Dispersions and inks
- Sensors and biomedicine
- Electrodes, sorbents and composites

## References

1. Bekyarova et al., “Chemical modification of epitaxial graphene: spontaneous grafting of aryl groups”, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2009. https://doi.org/10.1021/ja8057327 (primary)
2. Nair et al., “Fluorographene: a two-dimensional counterpart of Teflon”, Small 2010. https://doi.org/10.1002/smll.201001555 (primary)
3. Xu et al., “Flexible graphene films via the filtration of water-soluble noncovalent functionalized graphene sheets”, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2008. https://doi.org/10.1021/ja800745y (primary)
4. Chen et al., “Three-dimensional flexible and conductive interconnected graphene networks grown by chemical vapour deposition”, Nat. Mater. 2011. https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat3001 (primary)
5. Worsley et al., “Synthesis of graphene aerogel with high electrical conductivity”, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2010. https://doi.org/10.1021/ja1072299 (primary)
6. Luo et al., “Compression and aggregation-resistant particles of crumpled soft sheets”, ACS Nano 2011. https://doi.org/10.1021/nn203115u (primary)
7. Elias et al., “Control of graphene's properties by reversible hydrogenation: evidence for graphane”, Science 2009. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1167130 (further reading)
8. Georgakilas et al., “Functionalization of graphene: covalent and non-covalent approaches, derivatives and applications”, Chem. Rev. 2012. https://doi.org/10.1021/cr3000412 (further reading)

Credit: Drawn by LabCanvas at real proportions after Bekyarova et al., JACS 2009, Nair et al., Small 2010, Xu et al., JACS 2008, Chen et al., Nat. Mater. 2011 (doi:10.1038/nmat3001), Worsley et al., JACS 2010, Luo et al., ACS Nano 2011, and the papers in the details.

## Questions

**What does the “Functionalised graphene and 3D forms” template show?** Graphene chemistry and architecture in six panels: covalent nitrophenyl groups, fluorographene and noncovalent pyrenebutyrate on the sheet, and graphene foam grown on nickel, a graphene aerogel and crumpled graphene balls in 3D.

**What are the steps shown in “Functionalised graphene and 3D forms”?** 1. Covalent: aryl groups: Nitrophenyl groups added to the surface by covalent C–C bonds (Bekyarova et al. 2009). 2. Fluorographene: A fluorine atom on every carbon (Nair et al. 2010). 3. Noncovalent: π stacking: Pyrenebutyrate stacked on the sheet, a noncovalent functionalisation that makes the sheets water-soluble (Xu et al. 2008); flat aromatic molecules drawn 3.35 Å above the sheet. 4. Graphene foam: Template-directed CVD coats the struts of nickel foam with graphene; with the nickel etched away an interconnected, flexible graphene network remains (Chen et al. 2011). 5. Aerogel: GO sheets cross-linked by sol–gel chemistry, supercritically dried and thermally reduced (Worsley et al. 2010). 6. Crumpled balls: Made by capillary compression in rapidly evaporating aerosol droplets; held by folded, π–π stacked ridges (Luo et al. 2011).

**What are the starting materials and the product?** Starting materials: Graphene, graphene oxide, nickel foam template. Product: Functionalised sheets and 3D graphene materials.

**Which papers is “Functionalised graphene and 3D forms” based on?** Bekyarova et al., “Chemical modification of epitaxial graphene: spontaneous grafting of aryl groups”, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2009 (doi:10.1021/ja8057327); Nair et al., “Fluorographene: a two-dimensional counterpart of Teflon”, Small 2010 (doi:10.1002/smll.201001555); Xu et al., “Flexible graphene films via the filtration of water-soluble noncovalent functionalized graphene sheets”, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2008 (doi:10.1021/ja800745y); Chen et al., “Three-dimensional flexible and conductive interconnected graphene networks grown by chemical vapour deposition”, Nat. Mater. 2011 (doi:10.1038/nmat3001); Worsley et al., “Synthesis of graphene aerogel with high electrical conductivity”, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2010 (doi:10.1021/ja1072299); Luo et al., “Compression and aggregation-resistant particles of crumpled soft sheets”, ACS Nano 2011 (doi:10.1021/nn203115u); Elias et al., “Control of graphene's properties by reversible hydrogenation: evidence for graphane”, Science 2009 (doi:10.1126/science.1167130); Georgakilas et al., “Functionalization of graphene: covalent and non-covalent approaches, derivatives and applications”, Chem. Rev. 2012 (doi:10.1021/cr3000412).

**Can I edit the “Functionalised graphene and 3D forms” template?** Yes. Open it in the LabCanvas editor: all 43 layers are editable, including 6 generated objects (structures, plots, equipment) with their own settings. Change the text, colours and layout, then export PNG, TIFF, SVG or PDF.

**Do I need an account to use this template?** Not to view it here. To open and edit it, sign in to LabCanvas or create a free account (the free plan keeps up to 3 designs). Downloading the figure is part of LabCanvas Pro (US$19 a month or US$199 a year).