Method for producing mechanically robust linked particle networks

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10138317-B2
Application number	US-201715605433-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 25, 2017
Priority date	Aug 31, 2015
Publication date	Nov 27, 2018
Grant date	Nov 27, 2018

Abstract

A method of forming lightweight structures from particle networks includes functionalizing edges of particles of an anisotropic material, exfoliating of the particles to form sheets of the material, aligning the sheets of material to form a network of multi-layered and aligned particles, and forming a structure out of the network of particles. One example uses graphite powder mixed into 4-aminobenzoic acid for edge functionalization, and exfoliation occurs with sonication in a solvent. The resulting particles undergo alignment with an aligning nozzle that also dispenses the aligned particles to form a structure.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method, comprising:
functionalizing edges of particles of an anisotropic material;
exfoliating the particles to form sheets of the material;
aligning the sheets of material to form a network of multi-layered and aligned particles; and
forming a structure out of the network of particles.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the anisotropic material comprises graphene.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the functionalized graphene edge is created by condensation of 4-aminobenzoic acid with graphite powder to produce amino-functionalized graphene particles.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the amino-functionalized graphene particles are coupled with a reactive acrylate to produce vinyl edge functionalized graphene particles.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein exfoliating the particles comprising sonication of the particles in a solvent.

6. The method in claim 5 wherein the solvent is selected form a group consisting of N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone, N,N-dimethylacetamide, dimethylformamide and dimethyl methylphosphonate.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein aligning the sheets comprises aligning the particles inside a nozzle of a dispensing device.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the aligning the sheets further comprises applying an external excitation to the particles upon exit of the nozzle for the creation of permanent chemical linkages between the particles by reacting the chemical functions of the organic linker with the reactive functions onto the edge of the functional particles.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the external excitation comprises a pulsed ultraviolet light emitting diode and wherein the reactive functions onto the particles are vinyl groups.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein the external excitation comprises heat, the reactive functions of the edge functionalized particles are amino groups and the reactive organic linkers are selected form ma group consisting of difunctional epoxies, acyl chlorides, isocyanates.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the anisotropic material comprises layered silicate clay.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein functionalizing the edges comprises reacting the layered silicate clay with a mono-alkoxy silane coupling agent.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein exfoliating of the particles comprises exfoliating the particles in dimethylformamide and water.

Assignees

• Palo Alto Res Ct Inc

Inventors

• Iftime Gabriel
• Paschkewitz John Steven

Classifications

• C08G69/02

  Polyamides derived from amino-carboxylic acids or from polyamines and polycarboxylic acids · CPC title

• C08K9/08

  Ingredients agglomerated by treatment with a binding agent · CPC title

• C09C1/44

  Carbon · CPC title

• C08G71/02

  Polyureas · CPC title

• C09C3/08

  Treatment with low-molecular-weight {non-polymer} organic compounds {(C09C3/006, C09C3/048 take precedence)} · CPC title