Synthesis and characterisation of graphene from dry, shaded musa paradisiaca(plantain)leaves and dry, shaded tectona grandis(teak)leaves.

Graphene is fundamentally a two-dimensional material with extraordinary optical, thermal, mechanical, and electrical characteristics. It has a versatile surface chemistry and large surface area. It is a carbon nanomaterial, which comprises sp2 hybridized carbon atoms placed in a hexagonal lattice with one-atom thickness, giving it a two-dimensional structure. A large number of synthesis techniques including epitaxial growth, liquid phase exfoliation, electrochemical exfoliation, mechanical exfoliation, and chemical vapor deposition are used for the synthesis of graphene. The various techniques used for preparation or synthesis of graphene has their own peculiar benefits depending on the desired results. This study focuses on the synthesis and characterisation of graphene using dry shaded plantain leaves (musaparadisiaca) and dry shaded teak leaves (tectona grandis) as precusrsors. The normal route of producing graphene from synthetic graphite is capital intensive and also poses some environmental challenges. The aim of this study is to produce or synthesise graphene from biomass which are abundant in nature, cost-effective and eco-friendly. The process involves carbonisation of the carbon rich biomass by subjecting them to a controlled pyrolysis technique and further activating the produced char using the necessary activation agents. The further synthesis is done using chemical exfoliation approach to get the desired graphene and thorough characterisation is carried out on the synthesised graphene using various analytical methods to assess the structural, morphological, number of layers and functional properties of the synthesised graphene. The study helps in improvement and development of eco-friendly method of graphene production with good properties and different potential applications.