Cellulose Nanocrystal Templated Graphene Nanoscrolls for High Performance Supercapacitors and Hydrogen Storage: An Experimental and Molecular Simulation Study

Graphene nanoscrolls (GNS), due to their remarkably interesting properties, have attracted significant interest with applications in various engineering sectors. However, uncontrolled morphologies, poor yield and low quality GNS produced through traditional routes are major challenges associated. We demonstrate sustainable approach of utilizing bio-derived cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) as template for fabrication of GNS with tunable morphological dimensions ranging from micron-to-nanoscale(controlled length < 1 μm or >1 μm), alongwith encapsulation of catalytically active metallic-species in scroll interlayers. The surface-modified magnetic CNCs acts as structural-directing agents which provides enough momentum to initiate self-scrolling phenomenon of graphene through van der Waals forces and π-π interactions, mechanism of which is demonstrated through experimental and molecular simulation studies. The proposed approach of GNS fabrication provides flexibility to tune physico-chemical properties of GNS by simply varying interlayer spacing, scrolling density and fraction of encapsulated metallic nanoparticles. The hybrid GNS with confined palladium or platinum nanoparticles (at lower loading ~1 wt.%) shows enhanced hydrogen storage capacity (~0.2 wt.% at~20 bar and ~273 K) and excellent supercapacitance behavior (~223–357 F/g) for prolonged cycles (retention ~93.5–96.4% at ~10000 cycles). The current strategy of utilizing bio-based templates can be further extended to incorporate complex architectures or nanomaterials in GNS core or inter-layers, which will potentially broaden its applications in fabrication of high-performance devices.