Highly efficient enhancement of mechanical and tribological properties of Cu-based composites by addition of graphene-loaded Ni metal particles

The tight interface between graphene and Cu is the key to give full play to the comprehensive properties of Cu/C composites. In this study, reduced graphene oxide(RGO) was used as a reinforcing phase of Cu marix, and the interfacial bonding strength between RGO and Cu was enhanced by introducing Ni metal nanoparticles . RGO supported Ni nanosheets (Ni-RGO) were successfully prepared by in-situ chemical reduction of graphene oxide (GO) and the introduction of Ni nanoparticles into GO. Ni nanoparticles were tightly attached to the graphene sheets . The mechanical properties and tribological properties of Ni-RGO/Cu composites were significantly improved. The bending strength of Ni-RGO/Cu composites reached 162.2 MPa, which was much higher than that of the pure Cu. At the same time, Ni-RGO composites have the lowest wear rate, and the friction coefficient is stable between 0.1 and 0.2. The comprehensive performance of Ni-RGO composites is significantly enhanced due to the unique structure of Ni-RGO, and the introduction of Ni nanoparticles realizes the effective bonding between GO-Ni-Cu. This study provides a new and effective strategy for enhancing the interfacial bonding of Cu/C composites.