An automated metal powder three-dimensional (3D) printing method for in situ synthesis of free-standing 3D graphene foams (GFs) was successfully modeled by manually placing a mixture of Ni and sucrose onto a platform and then using a commercial CO₂ laser to convert the Ni/sucrose mixture into 3D GFs. The sucrose acted as the solid carbon source for graphene, and the sintered Ni metal acted as the catalyst and template for graphene growth. This simple and efficient method combines powder metallurgy templating with 3D printing techniques and enables direct in situ 3D printing of GFs with no high-temperature furnace or lengthy growth process required. The 3D printed GFs show high-porosity (∼99.3%), low-density (∼0.015g cm^–3), high-quality, and multilayered graphene features. The GFs have an electrical conductivity of ∼8.7 S cm^–1, a remarkable storage modulus of ∼11 kPa, and a high damping capacity of ∼0.06. These excellent physical properties of 3D printed GFs indicate potential applications in fields requiring rapid design and manufacturing of 3D carbon materials, for example, energy storage devices, damping materials, and sound absorption.

The drive for significant advancement in battery capacity and energy density inspired a revisit to the use of Li metal anodes. We report the use of a seamless graphene–carbon nanotube (GCNT) electrode to reversibly store Li metal with complete dendrite formation suppression. The GCNT-Li capacity of 3351 mAh g^–1_GCNT-Li approaches that of bare Li metal (3861 mAh g^–1_Li), indicating the low contributing mass of GCNT, while yielding a practical areal capacity up to 4 mAh cm^–2 and cycle stability. A full battery based on GCNT-Li/sulfurized carbon (SC) is demonstrated with high energy density (752 Wh kg^–1 total electrodes, where total electrodes = GCNT-Li + SC + binder), high areal capacity (2 mAh cm^–2), and cyclability (80% retention at >500 cycles) and is free of Li polysulfides and dendrites that would cause severe capacity fade.

This communication reports a simple, one-pot procedure for the synthesis and processing of transparent and conductive thin films of graphene/polyaniline nanocomposites based on an interfacial polymerization. Thin films presenting transmittance of 89% and sheet resistance of 60.6 Ω sq⁻¹ are spontaneously obtained and can be easily transferred to suitable substrates.