Graphene-like carbon nanosheet/copper composite with combined performance designed by pyrolyzing trimesic acid@copper formate

Abstract Graphene or graphene-like carbon nanosheet (GNS) with excellent properties presents great potential to improve substantially the combined properties of copper matrix composites. However, it is still a great challenge to develop new methods for the preparation of GNS-reinforced copper composites. In this work, high-strength, high-conductivity and low-thermal expansion GNS/Cu composites were prepared by pyrolyzing trimesic acid@copper formate and spark plasma sintering. Both the volume fraction and the order degree of carbon in GNS/Cu composites were improved by the introduction of trimesic acid. The highest tensile and compressive yield strength of GNS/Cu composites are 542 MPa and 637 MPa, respectively. After hot-rolling process, the plastic deformation and the electrical conductivity of the composites are improved effectively and reach 9% and 86.2% IACS, respectively; the average coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of the composite is as low as 12.4 × 10−6 °C−1, which is only 72.9% of pure Cu material. This work provides an effective solution for the design of the GNS/Cu composites with excellent combined performance.