A bio-inspired nacre-like layered hybrid structure of calcium carbonate under the control of carboxyl graphene

Abstract

In this paper, carboxyl graphene (GO-COOH) sheet matrices, which are heavily oxygenated and are similar to the organic matrices of molluscs, were used to construct nacre-like layered structures. The results showed that the surface of the hybrids was smooth and the cross section had a multilayer structure. Both the surface and the interlayer of the composite material generated calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) crystals. Furthermore, the spontaneity of the layered structure was found to be closely related to the concentration of the CaCO₃ crystals in which high concentration could inhibit the process, highlighting the determining role of the CaCO₃ concentration. To better understand the mechanisms for the formation of the layered structure, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FT-IR) were employed. This work presents an efficient and controllable way to construct nacre-like layered hybrid structures and also has great potential for promoting the application of GO-COOH in biomedical engineering, especially in the field of biomimetic materials.