One pot green synthesis of few-layer graphene (FLG) by simple sonication of graphite and Azardirachta Indica resin in water for high-capacity and excellent cyclic behavior of rechargeable lithium-ion battery

A simple, green, and eco-friend route is employed for the preparation of few-layer graphene using Azardirachta Indica resin (AZIr) in water. In addition, the preparation of the solvent (AZIr) for the exfoliation of graphene involves various steps, including vacuum filtration and surface tension optimization by the capillary rise method. It has been demonstrated that the 4 h sonication effectively exfoliated graphite to form a Few-Layer Graphene (FLG) sheet. Structural, morphological, and surface topographical analysis were performed using X-ray diffraction, Raman spectrum, FTIR spectrum, atomic force microscopy, and Scanning electron microscope. The as-prepared FLG was demonstrated as anode material for lithium-ion batteries¸ exhibiting a high initial capacity of 464 mAh g −1 at 0.1C and excellent cyclic performance of 527 mAh g −1 at 200th cycle with 100 % capacity retention. The maximum capacity of 281 mAh g −1 was achieved when tested at a high current rate of 10C. These results suggest that few-layer graphene is a promising material for high-performance Li-ion battery applications.