The introduction of graphene oxide

Graphite oxide was first prepared by Oxford chemist Benjamin C. Brodie in 1859, by treating graphite with a mixture of potassium chlorate and fuming nitric acid. In 1957 Hummers and Offeman developed a safer, quicker, and more efficient process, using a mixture of sulfuric acid H2SO4, sodium nitrate NaNO3, and potassium permanganate KMnO4, which is still widely used (as of 2009).[1] Recently, a safer and better method was developed using sulfuric acid H2SO4, phosphoric acid H3PO4, and potassium permanganate KMnO4.
Recently a mixture of H2SO4 and KMnO4 has been used to cut open carbon nanotubes lengthwise, resulting in microscopic flat ribbons of graphene, a few atoms wide, with the edges "capped" by oxygen atoms (=O) or hydroxyl groups (-OH).
Graphite oxide, formerly called graphitic oxide or graphitic acid, is a compound of carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen in variable ratios, obtained by treating graphite with strong oxidizers. The maximally oxidized bulk product is a yellow solid with C:O ratio between 2.1 and 2.9, that retains the layer structure of graphite but with a much larger and irregular spacing.
The bulk material disperses in basic solutions to yield monomolecular sheets, known as graphene oxide by analogy to graphene, the single-layer form of graphite.[2] Graphene oxide sheets have been used to prepare a strong paper-like material, and have recently attracted substantial interest as a possible intermediate for the manufacture of graphene. However, as of 2010 this goal remains elusive since graphene obtained by this route still has many chemical and structural defects.
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