Mechanical Toughening of Two-Dimensional Covalent Organic Frameworks Enabled by Graphene-Based Sandwich-Structured Nanocomposites

Shin, Bongki; Zhu, Yifan; Ai, Qing; Xie, Tianyou; Lin, Tong; Lee, Jeong-ha; Fang, Qiyi; Zhang, Honghu; Cantu, Rodolfo; Zhong, Yu; Zhu, Hanyu; Han, Yimo; Lou, Jun

doi:10.1021/acsmaterialslett.5c01207

Mechanical Toughening of Two-Dimensional Covalent Organic Frameworks Enabled by Graphene-Based Sandwich-Structured Nanocomposites

Journal Article · Tue Dec 02 00:00:00 EST 2025 · ACS Materials Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1021/acsmaterialslett.5c01207· OSTI ID:3010085

Shin, Bongki ^[1]; ^[1]; ^[1]; Xie, Tianyou ^[1]; Lin, Tong ^[1]; Lee, Jeong-ha ^[1]; Fang, Qiyi ^[2]; ^[3]; Cantu, Rodolfo ^[1]; ^[2]; ^[1]; Han, Yimo ^[1]; ^[1]

Rice Univ., Houston, TX (United States)
Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY (United States)
Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), Upton, NY (United States). National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II)

Low resistance to fracture in two-dimensional covalent organic frameworks (2D COFs) limits their practical applications, especially in mechanically demanding fields, such as flexible electronics and sensing devices. We address this critical limitation by fabricating a sandwich-structured nanocomposite consisting of graphene layers sandwiched between 2D COF layers (2D COFs/graphene/2D COFs) via chemical vapor deposition. Here, our sandwich-structured nanocomposites exhibit a remarkable improvement in modulus E, fracture toughness K_IC, and critical energy release rate G_C compared to pure 2D COFs. This enhancement is likely due to the graphene layers as the backbone of the sandwich structure effectively carrying and redistributing mechanical stress within the nanocomposite. Our findings demonstrate that a sandwich structure can improve the mechanical robustness of a 2D COF so that it can preserve the functionality and mechanical integrity for applications in stretchable electronics.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), Upton, NY (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: National Science Foundation (NSF); Robert A. Welch Foundation; USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Scientific User Facilities (SUF)

Grant/Contract Number:: SC0012704; SC0018193

OSTI ID:: 3010085

Report Number(s):: BNL--229248-2025-JAAM

Journal Information:: ACS Materials Letters, Journal Name: ACS Materials Letters Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 8; ISSN 2639-4979

Publisher:: ACS PublicationsCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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