The growing environmental awareness and sustainable development goals have driven the bioplastic industry, with polylactic acid (PLA) emerging as a biodegradable alternative to traditional polymers. However, its mechanical and barrier limitations have led to the use of reinforcements such as graphene, which significantly enhances its strength, impermeability, and antimicrobial properties.

Graphene and its derivatives have proven to be biocompatible and biodegradable materials, with great potential in biomedical and technological applications. Studies have validated their safety in tissues and organs, as well as their ability to be degraded by enzymes that limit their persistence both in the body and in the environment. Graphene and its derivatives are rarely found in their free form, as to harness their properties, they must be combined with three-dimensional materials or functionalized with other molecules or nanostructures to give them a specific property. This is of vital importance because such functionalizations reduce potential adverse effects, facilitating their integration into various industries and their use in sensitive applications like tissue engineering or biomedical products. Their continuous development reinforces their position as an innovative and safe material for future applications.

Graphene is a multifunctional carbon nanostructure that, through functionalization processes, can modify its properties for specific applications. These modifications include covalent and non-covalent interactions, as seen in graphene oxide (GO), which enhances its dispersion, biocompatibility, and integration capacity with polymers. Functionalizing graphene increases its efficiency, stability, and performance across various industries.

Graphene aerogels combine the three-dimensional properties of aerogels with graphene's stability and versatility, amplifying their adsorption and regeneration capacities in decontamination processes.