Since the graphene industry is growing very rapidly, it is important to distinguish between different graphene products currently available in the market.

The first pieces of single and few-layer graphene nanosheets were obtained through the exfoliation of bulk graphite using scotch tape. Although this route leads to non-defective pristine graphene, its low yield makes it unpractical for large scale. Mass production of graphene was made possible through chemical exfoliation of graphite. This can be achieved by direct exfoliation of graphite in a liquid, with or without a surfactant or by inserting chemical species between graphite interlayers to weaken the forces holding them together, thus facilitating their exfoliation. While these techniques are widely used for the production of graphene with low defects, the product is usually thick and is often referred to as nanoplatelets. These nanoplatelets are suitable for applications requiring high electrical and thermal conductivity but their low surface area and poor dispersibility in various solvents make their further processing difficult.

Solution-based approaches involve chemical oxidation of graphite to graphite oxide, which can be exfoliated to individual layers of graphene oxide sheets by mild ultrasonication or shear mixing in water. Graphene oxide is electrically insulating but can be converted back to the conductive form by reduction using chemical, thermal, solvothermal or laser techniques. The resulting reduced graphene oxide (often abbreviated as rGO) can be processed from solution, opening up vast opportunities for the use of graphene in many technological applications. The processability of rGO allows its direct incorporation into composites where it can improve mechanical and electrical properties of the host material. More importantly, rGO can achieve high surface areas in excess of 1000 m²/g, much higher than other techniques for exfoliating graphite.

It was discovered that the remaining edge defects on the surface of rGO can be beneficial for rapid electron transfer and higher catalytic activities, making this form of graphene ideal for electrochemical and energy storage applications in batteries and supercapacitors. It also shows promise as an active ingredient in inks and coatings for the growing markets of printed electronics and smart packaging. rGO becomes an obvious solution where the users are looking for large quantities of graphene for industrial applications.