Haydale announced the arrival of two new Rotovac plasma reactors, designed in collaboration with Haydale and built by Tantec.
The new plasma reactors are meant to increase the company's capacity and operational flexibility to meet increased graphene production needs. Haydale reports that commissioning has already begun and the reactors should be fully operational in January 2015.
Graphene Oxide is a single-atomic layered material, made by the powerful oxidation of graphite. Graphene Oxide's reputation is not as glamorous as that of pure graphene, but it has some interesting properties and applications. It is commonly sold in powder form, dispersed, or as a coating on substrates. Don't miss our new article that introduces Graphene Oxide.
Graphene oxide is relatively affordable and easy to find, with many companies that sell it. It does, however, get confusing since different companies offer products that vary in quality, price, form and more - making the choice of a specific product challenging. If you are interested in graphene oxide advice contact Graphene-Info and let us help you find the right GO for your exact needs!
Scientists from the Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad, and Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, have designed a unique graphene sheet that can detect the presence of e.coli bacteria that is one of the most common causes of food poisoning and urinary tract infections.
The scientists designed a low-cost acetate-based graphene sensor that can detect the presence of e.coli bacteria, even at concentrations as low as 10 lakh forming units per millilitres (cfu/ml). As the e.coli encounters the graphene sheet, the bacteria binds to it through a chemical process of creating holes in the sheet, thereby decreasing its resistance. The resistance of the graphene sheet can then be measured using a small device to detect the presence and amount of e.coli in the substance.
2014 will soon be over - and it was another fast-paced year for the graphene industry. Graphene-based products are finally entering the market, and research activities seem to increase and reveal the great promise of the new wonder material. Here are the top 10 stories posted on Graphene-Info in 2014, ranked by popularity (i.e. how many people read the story):
While there were some interesting research activities, it seems that the focus is indeed moving towards commercialization efforts, new materials and new products. Currently almost all graphene applications are in the composite materials market, and hopefully this will continue in 2015 and we'll also start seeing new graphene applications (maybe in batteries, solar panels, 3D printing, etc).
Researchers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), ELETTRA (Italy) and Technical University of Munich (Germany) have found that graphene could make using XPS (X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy) much less expensive and complicated.
XPS is a sensitive and informative surface analysis technique, that is often deemed unfit since it is expensive and requires a high vacuum to operate - making analyzing liquid and gas materials problematic. XPS works by bombarding the surface under study with X rays. The atoms on the surface of the material absorb the X-ray energy and re-emit that energy as photoelectrons. Scientists study the kinetic energy and number of the emitted electrons for clues about the sample’s composition and electronic state.
Researchers from Rice University discovered that nanotubes made of Boron Nitride (BN) can be combined with graphene to strengthen the material. The result opens the possibility of making such 'rebar' graphene not only with boron-based nanotubes, but also with other materials that have similar atomic structures.
BN and graphene share similar hexagonal lattice structures, which makes them relatively easy to use together. The researchers found that the BN nanotubes can partially open to form hybrid structures with graphene, while the remaining part of the nanotubes forms a reinforcing bar (or ‘rebar') that strengthens the graphene sheet.
University College London (UCL) has joined the EU's Graphene Flagship project to explore graphene applications and commercialization.
Four UCL departments (chemistry, chemical engineering, physics & astronomy and the London Centre for Nanotechnology) will take part in the Graphene Flagship’s work. The UCL scientists' work will focus on sheets of graphene in which about half of the carbon atoms are replaced with nitrogen ones. This changes the properties of the graphene, producing a web-like structure rather than a solid sheet, which gives it a much larger surface area. This structure modifies its electrical properties and can be good for a range of applications including batteries and catalysts.
Researchers from Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) found that incorporating crown ethers into a graphene framework can drastically increase their binding strength and selectivity. This discovery holds great potential for various sensor, battery and biotech applications.
Ethers are simple organic molecules in which an oxygen atom connects two carbon atoms. Ethers are the building blocks of common products like propellants, solvents, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. When ethers are linked together in the form of large molecular rings, they form crown ether molecules, which are of great scientific significance as the initial prototype in hostguest chemistry, a promising field for applications like sensors and separators.
Graphene 3D Lab announced its intention to complete a non-brokered private placement financing, after which a total of 1,000,000 units will be available for subscription at a price of CAD$ 1.00 per unit for gross proceeds of CAD$ 1,000,000.
Each Unit is comprised of one common share and one half warrant common share purchase. Each whole warrant entitles the holder to purchase a common share for CDN$ 1.25 for a period of two years.
Researchers from Kansas State University studied graphene oxide sheets as flexible paper electrodes for sodium-ion flexible batteries and found GO to have important properties that can boost the efficiency of such batteries.
The scientists explored graphene oxide sheets as flexible paper electrodes for sodium batteries. They found that sodium storage capacity of paper electrodes depends on the distance between the layers that can be adjusted by heating it in argon or ammonia gas. The researchers also showed that a flexible paper composed entirely of graphene oxide sheets can charge and discharge with sodium-ions for more than 1,000 cycles.