Researchers from the Amrita Centre for Nanoscience and molecular Medicine in India developed a simple graphene-based method of thermally ablating highly resistant cancer cells. The method involves  biodegradable graphene nanoparticles, which were found to be able to convert non-ionizing radio waves into heat energy at microscopic levels.

This heat may be enough to eliminate proteins and DNA insode cancer cells, bypassing even the most resistant cancer-cell mechanisms. The method itself is minimally invasive and can be executed on any part of the body. Once the graphene platelets get to the target tumor cells, the radio waves sent from outside the body can supply a large amount of heat at highly localized levels and destroy all cellular proteins, which should lead to cell death.

Dr. Elena Polyakova from Graphene 3D Lab was interviewed in IDTechEx Graphene Live! and discussed graphene composites, rivaling 2D materials and more: 

UK's Graphene Nanochem announced a profitable fourth quarter in 2014 partly thanks to successful sales of its PlatDrill and PlatQuartZ products. This profit is especially noteworthy in light of former projections by the company that warned of losses due to delays in the deployment of its PlatDrill series.

Graphene Nanochem declared that it has remained focused in advancing key areas of applications of its nanotechnology platforms: Performance Chemicals, Energy and Nanocomposites with the Water Treatment solution as the latest expansion.

Researchers from Nanjing Forestry University and the University of Maryland have designed unique microfibers that are a hybrid of graphene oxide (GO) nanosheets and one-dimensional nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC) fibers.

The result is superbly aligned strong microfibers that can potentially be better than carbon fibers and are even relatively cheap. The hybrid material is much stronger than its components apart, and molecular dynamics simulations reveal a strong synergistic effect between the GO and the NFC. the 1D NFC fibers can act as a string of sorts, to hold together 2D sheets, while the GO sheets can bridge NFC fibers together for extra strong binding. 

UK-based Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) is leading a European three-year collaboration called PlasCarb that aims to transform food waste into a sustainable source of graphene and renewable hydrogen. The project, will focus on transforming biogas generated by the anaerobic digestion of food waste using an innovative low energy microwave plasma process to split biogas (methane and carbon dioxide) into said products.

The CPI will be responsible for the technical aspects in the separation of biogas into methane and carbon dioxide, and separating of the graphitic carbon produced from the renewable hydrogen. The CPI's infrastructure allows for the microwave plasma process to be trialled and optimised at pilot production scale, with a future technology roadmap devised for commercial scale manufacturing.

The field of plasmonics involves surface plasmons that are generated when photons hit a metal surface, and has been much talked about in regards to revolutionary photonic circuits. Researchers from ICFO (Barcelona), in a collaboration with CIC nanoGUNE (San Sebastian), and CNR/Scuola Normale Superiore (Pisa) and Columbia University (New York) claim to have solved one of the major problem in relation to plasmons - the rapid loss of energy that the plasmons experience, limiting the range over which they could travel.

The researchers found that a graphene-boron nitride system is an excellent host for confined light and suppression of plasmon losses (when graphene is encapsulated in boron nitride, electrons can move ballistically for long distances without scattering, even at room temperature).

Claudio Marinelli, business development manager of Applied Graphene Materials, gave an interview at IDTechEx Graphene Live! where he talked about his company's process and products, his projections on the future of the graphene industry and more. 

The Spanish Gnanomat announced receiving EU funds for a project in the "SME instrument" of the H2020 program. The project called GRAPHEEN aims at scaling up a green, affordable and simple process for the industrial synthesis of graphene-based materials, for their use in energy applications.

Phase 1 will see Gnanomat receiving 50,000 Euro for accomplishing a feasibility study to evaluate the technical feasibility of scaling up its proprietary technology and to assess its commercial potential.

Korean Scientist at the university of Yonsei in Seoul and the Korean Institute of Ceramic Engineering & Technology designed round graphene microparticles by spraying graphene oxide droplets into a hot solvent. This technique could pose a versatile and simple approach to making electrode materials for batteries and supercapacitors with improved energy and power densities.

The researchers' particles comprise of graphene nanosheets radiating out from the center, an arrangement that increases the exposed surface area of the graphene and creates open nanochannels that can enhance charge transfer. The work was doen by passing an aqueous suspension of graphene oxide flakes through an ultrasonic nozzle, which uses sound waves to break the suspension into microdroplets. The scientists then sprayed the droplets downward into a 160° C mixture of organic solvent and ascorbic acid, a reducing agent. The hot mixture allows the graphene oxide to reduce to graphene sheets that cluster together. The water in the droplets evaporates and escapes toward the surface, which causes the unique arrangement of the nanosheets. 

Here are pictures of the University of Manchester's National Graphene Institute (NGI), currently under contruction, taken about a month ago. The pictures were taken by BAM Construction and engineering, involved in NGI construction. The buildings are evidently progressing nicely and look great!