Effect of surface modification of graphene oxide on photochemical stability of poly(vinyl alcohol)/graphene oxide composites

Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)/graphene oxide (GO) composites were prepared to improve the photochemical stability of PVA. The surface of GO was modified by oxyfluorination to introduce the polar functional groups on GO for the stronger interfacial interaction with PVA. The photochemical stability of PVA/oxyfluorinated-GO composites was evaluated by measuring the insoluble gel content after partial photodegradation of PVA under various UV irradiations. PVA/oxyfluorinated-GO composites showed the significant improvement in both the dispersion of GO in PVA matrix and the photochemical stability of PVA as the oxygen content increased in the oxyfluorination. The photochemical stability of composites had a close relation with the uniform distribution of GO in PVA matrix. The proper modification of GO by oxyfluorination showed the better photochemical stability for PVA/GO composites as compared to that of PVA/pristine GO composite.