OVER-ACTIVATION EFFECTS OF 4M NAOH ON COCONUT SHELL CARBON AND ITS IMPACT ON THE ELECTRICAL CONDUCTIVITY OF REDUCED GRAPHENE OXIDE
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24036/nn6xf628Keywords:
reduced graphene oxide, coconut shell, NaOH activation, over-activation, electrical conductivityAbstract
Excessively high concentrations of sodium hydroxide used in chemical activation may induce over-activation, leading to structural degradation of carbon-based materials. This study investigates the effect of 4 M NaOH activation on coconut shell–derived carbon and its impact on the structural characteristics and electrical conductivity of reduced graphene oxide (RGO). Coconut shell waste was carbonized at 350°C for 2 h and activated using 4M NaOH for 24 h, followed by oxidation to graphene oxide (GO) via the modified Marcano method and chemical reduction to RGO using hydrazine hydrate assisted by microwave heating. Structural and chemical analyses were performed using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), while electrical properties were measured using an LCR meter. The activated carbon exhibited an anomalously high mass yield of 125.30%, indicating severe particle agglomeration associated with over-activation. XRD analysis revealed re-expansion of the interlayer spacing (d₀₀₂ = 3.496 Å), suggesting increased structural disorder and fragmentation of the carbon framework. FTIR results confirmed excessive hydroxyl functional groups, indicating over-oxidation of the carbon surface. These structural disorders resulted in a significant decrease in RGO electrical conductivity to 2.11 × 10⁻⁶ S/cm, accompanied by a high resistivity of 4581.83 Ω·m. The degradation of electrical performance is attributed to disruption of sp² carbon domains and increased charge-carrier scattering at defect sites. These findings demonstrate that 4 M NaOH activation induces over-activation, which is detrimental to the electrical performance of biomass-derived RGO.
References
Ali, G., Mehmood, A., Ha, H. Y., Kim, J., & Chung, K. Y. (2017). Reduced graphene oxide as a stable and high-capacity cathode material for Na-ion batteries. Scientific Reports, 7(40910), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep40910
Aliyev, E., Filiz, V., Khan, M. M., Lee, Y. J., Abetz, C., & Abetz, V. (2019). Structural characterization of graphene oxide: Surface functional groups and fractionated oxidative debris. Nanomaterials, 9(1180), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.3390/nano9081180
Arman, M., Sabara, Z., & Arief, T. (2024). The Effect of Pyrolysis Temperature on Sawdust-Biomass Activated Carbon Using NaOH and NaCl Activators. Engineering Journal, 28(8), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.4186/ej.2024.28.8.1
Banerjee, S., De, B., Sinha, P., Cherusseri, J., & Kar, K. K. (2020). Applications of supercapacitors. In Springer Series in Materials Science (Vol. 300). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-43009-2_13
Bøggild, P., Mackenzie, D. M. A., Whelan, P. R., Petersen, D. H., Buron, J. D., Zurutuza, A., Gallop, J., Hao, L., & Jepsen, P. U. (2017). Mapping the electrical properties of large-area graphene. 2D Materials, 4, 1–32. https://doi.org/10.1088/2053-1583/aa8683
Cazetta, A. L., Vargas, A. M. M., Nogami, E. M., Kunita, M. H., Guilherme, M. R., Martins, A. C., Silva, T. L., Moraes, J. C. G., & Almeida, V. C. (2011). NaOH-activated carbon of high surface area produced from coconut shell: Kinetics and equilibrium studies from the methylene blue adsorption. Chemical Engineering Journal, 174(1), 117–125. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2011.08.058
Chaldun, E. R., Harmaji, A., Prabaswari, N. K., Listiyowati, L. N., Subhan, A., & Soepriyanto, S. (2020). Study of Reduced Graphene Oxide addition on the Electrical Conductivity and Flexural Strength of Metakaolin-based Geopolymer. Jurnal Keramik Dan Gelas Indonesia, 29(1), 29–44. https://doi.org/10.32537/jkgi.v29i1.6048
Chen, X., Qu, Z., Liu, Z., & Ren, G. (2022). Mechanism of Oxidization of Graphite to Graphene Oxide by the Hummers Method. ACS Omega, 7, 23503–23510. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsomega.2c01963
Cheng, F., Yang, X., Zhang, S., & Lu, W. (2020). Boosting the supercapacitor performances of activated carbon with carbon nanomaterials. Journal of Power Sources, 450(227678), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2019.227678
Febri Zola, N., Hidayat, R., Gusnedi, G., & Jhora, F. (2024). Analysis of Electrical Properties of Fe3O4/Graphene Oxide Nanocomposites Synthesized from Corn Cob Waste. Journal of Climate Change Society, 2(1), 65–74. https://doi.org/10.24036/jccs/vol2-iss1/28
Hamid, A., Rahmawati, Z., Abdullah, M., Purbaningtyas, T. E., Rohmah, F., & Febriana, I. D. (2022). The Influence of NaOH Activator Concentration on the Synthesis of Activated Carbon from Banana Peel for Pb(II) Adsorption. Eksakta: Berkala Ilmiah Bidang MIPA, 23(03), 158–166. https://doi.org/10.24036/eksakta/vol23-iss03/323
Husnah, M., Fakhri, H. A., Rohman, F., Aimon, A. H., & Iskandar, F. (2017). A modified Marcano method for improving electrical properties of reduced graphene oxide (rGO). Materials Research Express, 4, 1–5. https://doi.org/10.1088/2053-1591/aa707f
Kabir Ahmad, R., Anwar Sulaiman, S., Yusup, S., Sham Dol, S., Inayat, M., & Aminu Umar, H. (2022). Exploring the potential of coconut shell biomass for charcoal production. Ain Shams Engineering Journal, 13(101499), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asej.2021.05.013
Marcano, D. C., Kosynkin, D. V., Berlin, J. M., Sinitskii, A., Sun, Z., Slesarev, A., Alemany, L. B., Lu, W., & Tour, J. M. (2010). Improved Synthesis ofGraphene Oxide. AcsNANO, 4(8), 4806–4814. https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.103179
Najati, B. ., Junita, T. ., Syakir, N., & Fitrilawati. (2023). Characteristics of Graphene Like Material Synthesized from Coconut Shell Charcoal Powder using Solid State Method. Jurnal Ilmu Dan Inovasi Fisika, 7(1), 30–40. https://doi.org/10.24198/jiif.v7i1.40655
Putri, N. A., Hikmah, U., & Prasetyo, A. (2023). GREEN SINTESIS OKSIDA GRAFENA TEREDUKSI DARI ARANG TEMPURUNG KELAPA DAN KAYU DENGAN MENGGUNAKAN REDUKTOR RAMAH LINGKUNGAN ASAM L-ASKORBAT. 17(1), 82–88.
Sahara, E., Dahliani, N. K., & Manuaba, I. B. P. (2017). PEMBUATAN DAN KARAKTERISASI ARANG AKTIF DARI BATANG LIMBAH TANAMAN GUMITIR DENGAN AKTIVATOR ZnCl2. Jurnal Kimia, 11(2), 174–180. https://doi.org/10.24843/jchem.2019.v13.i01.p15
Sari, S. P., Husnah, M., & Sirait, R. (2023). Preparasi Karbon Aktif Tempurung Kelapa Menggunakan Gabungan Aktivasi Kimia Dan Fisika. CHEDS: Journal of Chemistry, Education, and Science, 7(2), 142–148. https://doi.org/10.30743/cheds.v7i2.8046
Sudjoko, C., Sasongko, N. A., Utami, I., & Maghfuri, A. (2021). Utilization of electric vehicles as an energy alternative to reduce carbon emissions. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 926(012094), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/926/1/012094
Turcheniuk, K., Bondarev, D., Amatucci, G. G., & Yushin, G. (2020). Battery materials for low-cost electric transportation. Materials Today, 42, 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mattod.2020.09.027
Wijaya, N. M. A., Kumara, I. N. S., & Divayana, Y. (2021). Perkembangan Baterai Dan Charger Untuk Mendukung Pemasyarakatan Sepeda Listrik Di Indonesia. Jurnal SPEKTRUM, 8(1), 15. https://doi.org/10.24843/spektrum.2021.v08.i01.p3
York, R., & Bell, S. E. (2019). Energy transitions or additions?: Why a transition from fossil fuels requires more than the growth of renewable energy. Energy Research and Social Science, 51, 40–43. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2019.01.008
Yu, X., & Manthiram, A. (2021). Sustainable Battery Materials for Next-Generation Electrical Energy Storage. Advanced Energy and Sustainability Research, 2(2000102), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1002/aesr.202000102
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Hanafi Mughni Rasyid, Rahmat Hidayat, Yenni Darvina, Leni Aziyus Fitri (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
