Conductive In Situ Reduced Graphene Oxide-Silk Fibroin Bionanocomposites

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Biomaterials Engineering

Background:

• Silk fibroin (SF) is a natural biopolymer with excellent biocompatibility.
• Graphene oxide (GO) and its reduced form (rGO) offer unique electrical and mechanical properties.
• Developing advanced bionanocomposites (BNCs) requires integrating biomaterials with nanomaterials.

Purpose of the Study:

• To fabricate and characterize bionanocomposites (BNCs) using silk fibroin (SF) and reduced graphene oxide (rGO).
• To investigate the structural, morphological, and electrical properties of SF-rGO BNCs.
• To assess the potential of SF-rGO BNCs as conductive biomaterials.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of SF-rGO BNCs with varying rGO content.
• Characterization using UV-visible spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HR-TEM).
• Analysis of rGO formation via Raman spectroscopy and measurement of DC electrical conductivity.

Main Results:

• UV-vis spectra confirmed GO reduction to rGO within the SF matrix.
• XRD showed a decrease in GO intensity with increasing reaction time.
• SEM and HR-TEM visualized the presence and morphology of rGO within SF.
• Raman spectroscopy confirmed rGO formation through an increased I_D/I_G ratio.
• DC conductivity of SF-rGO BNCs increased significantly with higher rGO content, from 1.28 × 10^-9 to 82.4 × 10^-9 S/cm.

Conclusions:

• Successful fabrication of SF-rGO bionanocomposites.
• Demonstrated reduction of GO to rGO within the SF matrix.
• Achieved enhanced electrical conductivity in SF biopolymer by incorporating rGO, moving from insulating to conducting behavior.