Facile One-Pot Solvothermal Synthesis of the RGO/MWCNT/Fe₃O₄ Hybrids for Microwave Absorption

Abstract

How to effectively regulate the electromagnetic parameters of magnetic composites to achieve better microwave absorption (MA) performances is still a serious challenge. Herein, we constructed nanocomposites composed of magnetic constituents and carbon materials to obtain high-efficiency electromagnetic wave absorbers. Self-assembled, multi-interfacial, and porous RGO/MWCNT/Fe₃O₄ hybrids (GMFs) were synthesized via in situ one-pot solvothermal method. The growth mechanism of the GMFs would be that the defects on reduced graphene oxide (RGO) provide sites for the crystallization of Fe₃O₄. Also, the RGO and Fe₃O₄ were further linked by the cross-connection of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), which acted as a bridge. The MA mechanism of GMFs was studied while considering the synergistic effects between the three components (RGO, MWCNT, and raspberry-shaped Fe₃O₄) and their multi-interfacial and porous structure. Also, the MA performance of the GMFs was conducted. The GMFs exhibited a maximum reflection loss (RL) value of -61.29 dB at 10.48 GHz with a thickness of 2.6 mm when the contents of RGO and MWCNT were 6.3 and 1.3 wt %, respectively. The RL values (≤-10 dB) were observed to be in the range of 8.96-12.32 GHz, and the effective microwave absorption bandwidth was tunable from 3.52 to 18 GHz by changing the sample thickness. The results revealed that the multi-interfacial and porous structure of the GMFs is beneficial to MA performance by inducing multiscatterings. Since no toxic solvents were used, this method is environmentally friendly and has potential for large-scale production. The prepared GMFs may have a wide range of applications in MA materials against electromagnetic interference pollution.