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Updated: Feb 6, 2026

Preparing Silica Aerogel Monoliths via a Rapid Supercritical Extraction Method
Published on: February 28, 2014
Preparation and Characterization of Graphene Oxide Aerogels: Exploring the Limits of Supercritical CO2 Fabrication
Alejandro Borrás1, Gil Gonçalves1, Gregorio Marbán2
1Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Campus UAB, 08193, Bellaterra, Spain.
Abstract:
The supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2 ) synthesis of non-reduced graphene oxide (GO) aerogels from dispersions of GO in ethanol is here reported as a low-cost, efficient, and environmentally friendly process. The preparation is carried out under the mild conditions of 333 K and 20 MPa. The high aspect ratio of the used GO sheets (ca. 30 μm lateral dimensions) allowed the preparation of aerogel monoliths by simultaneous scCO2 gelation and drying. Solid-state characterization results indicate that a thermally-stable mesoporous non-reduced GO aerogel was obtained by using the supercritical procedure, keeping most of the surface oxygenated groups on the GO sheets, thus, facilitating further functionalization. Moreover, the monoliths have a very low density, high specific surface area, and excellent mechanical integrity; characteristics which rival those of most light-weight reduced graphene aerogels reported in the literature.
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