Here we study how graphene oxide affects silica aerogels and their physical and mechanical properties by examining volume shrinkage, pore volume, surface area and compressive strength of these composite aerogels. Composite aerogels were made through adding different amount of graphene oxide (GO) to sodium silicate precursor by using ambient pressure drying method. Additionally, the chemical composition of the composite aerogels was determined using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. A rougher structure was observed when the GO loading increased and the characteristic peak of GO in XRD disappeared due to the random distribution of GO within the silica matrix. FTIR spectrum of composite aerogels shows that the relative intensity of silanol groups on the silica matrix have downward tendency with the addition of GO. The specific surface area had maxima with the addition of 0.01 wt% GO surface area to 578 m2 /g. The mechanical strength of aerogels was increased, with the loading of GO from 0.0 wt% to 0.2 wt%, and the compressive modulus increased from 0.02 MPa to 0.22 MPa.

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Germanium dioxide/reduced graphene oxide (GeO2/rGO) composite aerogel is synthesized by using supercritical drying method. rGO and composite aerogel show high specific surface area. In addition, as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), the composite aerogel exhibits a good capacity retention after 500 cycles. The outstanding characteristics of non-aggregated graphene and homogeneously dispersed GeO2 nanoparticles in the rGO/GeO2 aerogel account for the noticeable electrochemical properties. The application of the rGO/GeO2 electrode indicated in this study is estimated to encourage the development of affordable carbon-based materials for LIBs anode applications.

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