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Abstract: In this paper, reduced graphite oxide (RGO) was prepared using thiourea dioxide as reductant and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) as stabilizer. Thiourea dioxide, a cheap and nontoxic industrialized material, was demonstrated to be an efficient reducing agent for graphite oxide (GO) in this paper. Ultraviolet and visible (UV–vis) spectroscopy results revealed that the reduction of GO could be readily achieved in 10min, a reaction time which is much shorter than those required in common reduction reactions. The procedures of reduction including the by-products are all nontoxic, thus it is absolutely environmentally friendly. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time that thiourea dioxide was successfully used to prepare RGO. Moreover, the stabilizer, PVP, which could be easily absorbed onto the surface of RGO, provided RGO with good water and organic solvents solubility, with low conductivity though. However, by controlling the content of PVP, RGO with balanced solubility and conductivity can be obtained. The resultant RGO could be used as nanofillers to prepare conductive materials and biomaterials with potential applications as electrical devices or biosensors. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Sodium hydrosulfite is used to reduce graphite oxide in current study. The preparation of poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA)/graphene nanocomposites is realized using two simple steps: the synthesis of PVA/graphite oxide (GO) nanocomposites film and immersion of such a film in the reducing agent aqueous solution. This method prohibits the agglomeration of GO during direct reduction in PVA/GO aqueous solution, and opens a new way to scale up the production of graphene nanocomposites using a simple reducing agent. A 40% increase in tensile strength and 70% improvement in elongation at break have been obtained with only the addition of 0.7wt.% of reduced graphite oxide. Furthermore, a good level of conductivity and a variation in the surface property of the prepared films have been observed for the composites containing graphene. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]