Polystyrene as a thin film on arbitrary substrates or pellets form defective graphene/graphitic films or powders that can be dispersed in water and organic solvents. The materials were characterized by visible absorption, Raman and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, electron and atomic force microscopy, and electrochemistry. Raman spectra of these materials showed the presence of the expected 2D, G, and D peaks at 2750, 1590, and 1350 cm-1, respectively. The relative intensity of the G versus the D peak was taken as a quantitative indicator of the density of defects in the G layer.
Keywords: 3D graphene sponges; electrochemistry; graphene; polystyrene.