Characterisation of graphene fibres and graphene coated fibres using capacitively coupled contactless conductivity detector

The use of capacitively coupled contactless conductivity detection (C 4 D) for the characterisation of thin conductive graphene fi bres, graphene composite fi bres, and graphene coated fi brous materials is demon- strated for the fi rst time. Within a few seconds, the non-destructive C 4 D detector provides a pro fi le of the longetudinal physical homogeneity of the fi bre, as well as extra information regarding fi bre mophology and composition. In addition to the theoretical considerations related to the factors a ff ect the output signal, this work evaluates the properties of graphene fi bres using scanning C 4 D following the manufac- turing process of wet-spinning. Furthermore, conductive graphene-coated fi brous materials and the e ff ectiveness of the coating and reduction procedures applied could be investigated. Apart from the application of C 4 D in the monitoring of such processes, the feasibility of this small, highly sensitive and rapidly-responsive detector to monitor strain and elasticity responses of conductive and elastomeric composite fi bres for applications in motion sensing, biomedical monitoring, and stretchable electronics was also demonstrated.