Making graphene from waste

We can now make graphene from sources that are inexpensive, including cookies, dog feces and other waste.

See the vid below for demonstration, or see a pretty good source article from Guardian on the whole story.

New 2D material on the scene

MoS2, molybdenum disulfide may not have the best name to it yet, but seems promising with its electrical properties.

See more in the original post.

http://www.newelectronics.co.uk/electronics-news/new-wonder-material-to-rival-graphene/44450/

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A few videos on graphene

This is with Andrew Geim, one of the two awarded the Nobel prize for experiments in graphene.

And the second with Nobel prize winner Konstantin Novoselov

Quick charge and discharge with graphene

With use of graphene in batteries, we could have 10x faster charge and discharge. Those are the aspects regular batteries are not handling very well today. Especially those in electric cars and mobiles would benefit from this development big time.

See the article for more info.

Graphene properties change based on where it is

According to a few articles, chemical and physical properties of graphene change based on what material is near it. Since graphene is so thin, the bonds btw atoms can be easily affected by the surroundings.

This is useful in creating various patterns for sensors. The other dimension is that it behaves differently when more layers of graphene are added as well.

Read more at science daily.

Graphene sandwich modelling and cutting

I wanted to share a video and an article about modelling a several layer thick graphene composites. In the video, the material is being cut by an ion beam, re-positioned at a very small scale.

Graphene facts graphical presentation

If you wanted to learn more about graphene in a user friendly way, you could check out the visual map at:
http://www.visualcapitalist.com/portfolio/graphene-the-2d-material-that-could-change-everything

Graphene adds efficiency to artificial photosynthesis

Korean scientists have proven higher efficiency by combining graphene itself in the process of artificial photosynthesis. Graphene figures here as a photo-catalyst. This can be used to produce fine chemicals/fuels made with solar energy.

See the source at phys.org for more info.

Now graphene can repair itself

A new property of graphene has been discovered, it can repair itself spontaneously after holes have been made to its fabric.

It rebuilds itself from available atoms of carbon in its vicinity.


Sources:
Nano Letters
Gizmodo

Graphene affects the prices of raw materials

I was thinking of how to visualize the graphene production cost on this site. Then my friend (Armin Roehrl) shared an information on how the graphite prices are going up. This is a significant opportunity for investment.

I would also check out this interview about the prices and future of graphite mining to get a good sober overview where to start and what to look for.

Video: Why should Europe invest in graphene?

Nice video with people from science around the Europe explaining why graphene is an important discovery and why it should be invested into.

Andrew Geim explains why Graphene is not patented

In an interview from 2010 Andre Geim mentions why Graphene isn't patented.

We considered patenting; we prepared a patent and it was nearly filed. Then I had an interaction with a big, multinational electronics company. I approached a guy at a conference and said, "We've got this patent coming up, would you be interested in sponsoring it over the years?" It's quite expensive to keep a patent alive for 20 years. The guy told me, "We are looking at graphene, and it might have a future in the long term. If after ten years we find it's really as good as it promises, we will put a hundred patent lawyers on it to write a hundred patents a day, and you will spend the rest of your life, and the gross domestic product of your little island, suing us." That's a direct quote.

I considered this arrogant comment, and I realized how useful it was. There was no point in patenting graphene at that stage. You need to be specific: you need to have a specific application and an industrial partner. Unfortunately, in many countries, including this one, people think that applying for a patent is an achievement. In my case it would have been a waste of taxpayers' money.

Long term the lack of a patent will only help to encourage innovation with Graphene, and will allow companies to find currently unimaginable uses.

Graphene traps light

Scientists can now control light at nanoscale with graphene. Which means we will have better nano-sensors.

Scientists control light at a nanoscale with graphene

Worldwide graphene production made possible

The material can now be manufactured almost anywhere. Graphene was discovered initially by peeling off a layer from graphite.

This one is basically taking graphite, sticking it to water, blowing some air on it to produce flakes and those flakes can then be used to create graphene coating.

You can find the full article here on EurekAlert.com

Filtering sea water can be made efficient with graphene

Graphene could be better than the most desalination techniques. It works like pushing sea water through a membrane. You will have water on one side and salt on the other. Looks great so far.

The simulations identified an intermediate range of nanopore diameters where the nanopores were large enough to allow the passage of water molecules but small enough to restrict salt ions.

Guys from MIT made a really nice video that shows the tech in user friendly detail.

New graphene battery charging in 10 minutes

Innovation in graphene space will allow for a new battery charging in 10 minutes. It has been recognized as one of the top innovations today.

Demand for graphene rising, making nuclear power safer

Another wondrous use of Graphene - making nuclear power safer. In an article about the surging demand for Graphene this little nugget of information stands out:

A new generation of nuclear reactors called pebble-bed nuclear reactors use large amounts of flake graphite. These reactors get their name from the pebble-sized spheres of graphite mixed with uranium that they contain. “This structure allows pebble bed reactors to produce power more efficiently – and safely – than conventional reactors,” Alex Cowie, editor of Diggers & Drillers, wrote recently. “This technology means nuclear reactors can be smaller, and as easy to run as turning a switch.”

Finally - Transistor (Barristor) made of graphene

Want 100 x Performance? Chip it in!

Samsung has developed what others were trying to do until now. Graphene could not switch on/off well and they seem to have nailed it.

For a more scientific information, read through the Science Magazine abstract on Graphene Barristor, a Triode Device with a Gate-Controlled Schottky Barrier.

For a less scientific mind, read the Samsung develops graphene device for transistor use.

Super strong and versatile polymers bound with graphene

Graphene is indeed an unstoppable force. Scientists have come up with a way how to combine it with plastics in order to create super-materials. Check this out:
Jaeton Glover, a post-doctoral chemist at William & Mary, explains that the group incorporates graphene oxide into polymers, a process that opens the door for a range of enhanced plastics that are super-strong as well as super-versatile.

See the original article called New graphene oxide-reinforced polymers show bright promise - Nano Academia Nanotechnology news.

UK Govt Squandering Science Funds

In a letter to the The Daily Telegraph a group of scientists including Sir Andrew Geim accuse the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) of interferign with funding for science projects to meet policy objectives.

“The EPSRC is no longer allocating funds on a fair and transparent basis,” the letter says. “Excellence is a secondary consideration. The wealth of talent following new ideas, which could and would compete for such funding, is being side-lined on the whims of administrators. Non-competitive processes, in whatever arena, are a poor investment and such misuse of public funds is deeply worrying.”

This letter is arriving on the same day that another group of another 100 scientists are delivering a coffin to the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council to protest the death of science.

Graphene goes into sound and sonic cloaking

There is an article in New Scientist that tells us how graphene could be used for sound cloaking. Apparently, it's properties allow the sound travel guided around or through objects!

Nanotech 2012 Conference will be in Santa Clara

If you're in Santa Clara from June 18th until the 21st - you're in for a treat. The Nanotech 2012 Conference will be happening with nearly two days of events covering the big-daddy of nanotech materials - Graphene. If the presentations aren't your taste then there is also a half day work shop on Graphene.

Unfortunately in the 2 weeks of this sites existence we have not made enough money to afford tickets (plane, conference or even meal), but we now have a goal for next years Nanotech 2013. Of course this is predicated on the doom sayers interpretation of the ending of the Mayan calendar being incorrect and that we will all be alive next year.

Perhaps the end of the Mayan calendar, and the start of the next age is really the start of the Graphene age of wonders.

Sir Andre Geim is Knighted

Already a Nobel laureate, Sir Andrew Geim, one of the original discoverers of Graphene has now been Knighted.

Sir Andre Geim, the scientist from the University of Manchester who discovered the "wonder material" graphene with colleague Professor Konstantin Novoselov, has been awarded a knighthood.

 I'm surprised it took 8 years, but apparently the Queen is a bit slow in her advanced age.

Graphene paper discovery

Big news, big news! Scientists have developed a graphene paper.

Why is it big? Because the material binds water as well as repels it (What?). Now, it also has some shape memory and other features added to it.

This information is spreading quickly. Quite a few mentions on twitter, will give you a lot of results.

Will you be wearing Graphexeter soon?

There's a new material made from two layers of graphene sandwiching chlorine that supposedly makes graphene even more conductive without sacrificing transparency.

Scientists Invent Graphene for Wearable Electronics, Mirrors Tom's Hardware Guide The new material is call GraphExeter and is based on two graphene layers with ferric chloride molecules between them. According to the research report, ferric chloride greatly improves the electrical conductivity of graphene, but do not affect its ...

No estimate yet on when this new material will be available - but imagine the uses in women's bikinis!

New Graphene Centre Laboratory in Bath

The University of Bath is opening a new Graphene Centre Laboratory including the ability to build Graphene structures one atom at a time.

  The new laboratory, officially opened by our Vice-Chancellor Professor Dame Glynis Breakwell on Tuesday 1 May, forms part of the Centre for Graphene Science, which brings together expertise at the Universities of Bath and Exeter. Professor Simon Bending from the University's Department of Physics said: "Graphene is a remarkable material made of a single layer of carbon atoms. Combining high strength, transparency and flexibility with excellent electrical and thermal conductivity, it has many potential applications."

Building atomic structures an atom at a time could be one of the great achievements of our time, there has long been talk of  atomic scale robots for medical use. Perhaps when Skynet finally does take over it won't be with large humanoid robots, but instead by microscopic death machines.

Making graphene is 'easy'

There are quite a few articles and videos on making graphene.

This video is like most of them and instructs you on how to make graphene from graphite stuck on a tape, then transferred onto a solid metal pad for microscope viewing. This will of course not lead to producing sheets of graphene, but you could eventually achieve getting a bit of it.

This article will tell you more about the details and what size you could possibly achieve with that method. There is also the Nobel prize winner Konstantin Novoselov talking about and demonstrating the method.

Graphene muscles for robots

There is a nice article about how muscles can be made of graphene for new generation of robots. Appears that the muscle technology is one of the few essentials that has been keeping the robotics at bay until now.

Check out the reference article at geek.com.

Does Graphene have a competitor in Silicene?

There's a new compound that may be closer to actual production use than Graphene - and it is Silicene. Single layer silicone with many of the same properties as Graphene.


Forget Graphene, Silicene Is Here to Blow Your Mind - Gizmodo
Well it looks like silicene is here to steal the spotlight. Researchers have just made the first sheet of single-atom thick silicon. Silicene has been a work in progress for years, but they think they've finally got it down now, and it represents a ... Move over graphene, silicene is the new star material New Scientist

all 10 news articles »

Will Silicene soon supersede Graphene?

Graphene - What you may have missed by now

1. Research in graphene has actually been rewarded with a nobel prize in physics / 2010 (Andre Geim, Konstantin Novoselov)
2. Is called the 'perfect atomic lattice', because of its molecular structure, being one atom thick

Graphene in Sci-Fi (Night's Dawn Trilogy)

I have just started reading the Night's Dawn Trilogy by Peter F. Hamilton. I have seen a reference to a similar material:

The armour which went on top of his new shiny-black skin was a dull monobonded-carbon exoskeleton with a built-in cold-gas manoeuvring pack, capable of withstanding virtually any kinetic impact the Ruin Ring would shoot at him. The SII suit wouldn’t puncture, no matter what struck him, but it would transmit any physical knock. He ran both suit and armour checklists again while he clipped tools to his belt.