Graphene-based thin films: fabrication and applications

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Greenhouse gas emissions and industrial contaminations in wastewater play a major role in global warming and have direct adverse effects on humans, animals, and plants. There is therefore an urgent need for green technologies to address these problems via deployable and cost-effective air pollution monitoring systems and air/water treatment technologies. Quantum materials based on graphene and its derivatives are among the most promising platforms to help us achieve those goals. They have unique structural and electrical properties that can be used to achieve sensitive gas detection, efficient molecular trapping and photocatalysis processes able to reduce pollutants to harmless substances. This project aims to identify scalable fabrication techniques of graphene oxide and reduced graphene oxide thin films that can be used to produce, at low cost, efficient devices for environmental applications. Thin film samples will first be fabricated at the University of El Manar Tunis and they will then be tested at the University of Ottawa to assess their performances for gas detection, gas trapping and photocatalysis. This research harvest unique properties of quantum materials to support Canada's goals in greenhouse reduction and improve overall health of Canadians by supporting the development of a new generation of chemical detectors as well as air/water treatment technologies.