Synthesis and characterization of Zeolite / Graphene oxide nanocomposite

Graphene is a sheet of two-dimensional (2D) single layer sp2 hybridized carbon atoms with exceptional electrical, mechanical and thermal properties [1]. Geim and co-workers discovered graphene, the thinnest known material, in 2004 and received Noble Prize in Physics for this discovery. It has special properties which make it suitable for many applications. Graphene oxide (GO) is oxidized form of graphene that has carboxylic, hydroxide and epoxy groups. But there are some concerns about toxicity of graphene and its derivatives. Recent researches have shown that different forms of graphene will affect differently on cells. A lot of factors are important, some of them are rigidity, lateral dimensions and etc [2,3]. Additionally, large surface area of graphene, π–π stacking and electrostatic or hydrophobic interactions of graphene, hydrophilic interaction of graphene oxide allows it to achieve high drug loading capacity. Zeolites, porous aluminosilicates, have found many uses because of their special architecture. They have been used widely as absorbants, catalysts, and detergent builders. Recently their uses in biomedical applications have attracted a lot of attention. For example, they have been used in biosensors, magnetic resonance imaging and drug delivery systems. As mentioned before, different forms of graphene will effect on cells differently and preparing safe composites of it has got a lot of interest so adding zeolite not only improves its biocompatibility but also doesn’t decrease surface area of nanocomposite so much because of high surface area of zeolite [4]. Herein we synthesized zeolite/GO nanocomposite and as prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Moreover, drug (Curcumin) loading capacity of nanocomposite was investigated.