Conductive and superhydrophobic cotton fabric through pentaerythritol tetrakis(3-(3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxyphenyl)propionate) assisted thermal reduction of graphene oxide and modification with methyltrichlorosilane

Pentaerythritol tetrakis(3-(3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxyphenyl)propionate), an antioxidant widely applied in the plastic industry, was used to assist thermal reduction of graphene oxide (GO) on a cotton fabric in air. l-ascorbic acid was also applied for comparison. GO was deposited on the fabric by the padding method. Reduction of GO deposited on fiber surfaces at 180 and 220 °C in air imparted electrical conductivity. For all the materials the conductivity worsened after the reduction during cooling and during the first hours of storage at room conditions. However, the most stable effect of GO reduction was achieved using pentaerythritol tetrakis(3-(3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxyphenyl)propionate), which assisted the reduction of GO at both 180 and 220 °C, and allowed to obtain the cotton fabric with a stable surface resistivity of 6.6 and 3.7 MΩ/sq, respectively. Moreover, superhydrophobicity of the conductive fabric was achieved by modification with methyltrichlorosilane in an anhydrous environment.