April 2018

Versarien has announced that it has signed an agreement with Luxus to develop a UK graphene-enhanced polymer supply chain, to enable the volume production of graphene enhanced plastics.

Luxus manufactures high quality thermoplastics from prime and recycled polymers and is the largest independently owned plastic manufacturer in the UK, supplying plastics to the automotive, packaging, civil engineering and a variety of other sectors.

Directa Plus, a producer and supplier of graphene-based products, recently announced that it has reentered into a 12-month exclusivity agreement and 9-month development agreement with an existing global luxury accessories customer, to produce graphene-enhanced accessories with increased mechanical properties.

'The value of the exclusivity and the development agreement, ahead of entering into an anticipated commercial contract, amounts to approximately €130,000,' the firm said.

Researchers at Sunway University in Malaysia have developed and produced graphene-based lubricants to improve automotive and industrial lubricants. They aim to commercialize their graphene-based nanolubricant 'Infinoil' within the year, which can reduce friction and wear, improving engine efficiency in automotive and industrial applications.

"Wear of engines and machinery continues to be a global concern costing billions annually. Traditional lubricants which use chemical additives have reached the threshold limit in-terms of efficiency. To meet the modern engineering lubrication challenges which primarily deal with nanoscale-friction and thermal performance, we took up nanomaterials to find a solution. Having successfully exploited metallic, metal oxides, graphene and other 2-dimensional materials for heat transfer applications since 2007, our current focus is on heat transfer fluids which also include nanolubricants," said the researchers.

Directa Plus reported its financial results for 2017. Revenues were €1.23 million, up more than 50% from €0.82 million in 2016. Revenues from graphene products and services increased 29% (to €0.95 million). The company lost €3.16 million in 2017 (down from €3.67 million in 2016). At the end of 2017, Directa Plus had €6.9 million in cash and equivalents.

Directa says that in 2017 its customer list more then doubled to 35 active customers (up from 16 in 2016). Looking ahead to 2018, the company expects to increase its revenues from existing clients - and to have new customers that order commercial materials.

Researchers at the Russia-based MIPT, MSPU and the University of Manchester revealed the mechanisms leading to photocurrent in graphene under terahertz radiation. The paper is said to put an end to a long-lasting debate about the origins of direct current in graphene illuminated by high-frequency radiation, and also sets the stage for the development of high-sensitivity terahertz detectors. Such detectors have applications in medical diagnostics, wireless communications and security systems.

In 2005, MIPT alumni Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov experimentally studied the behavior of electrons in graphene and found that electrons in graphene respond to electromagnetic radiation with an energy of quantum, whereas the common semiconductors have an energy threshold below which the material does not respond to light at all. However, the direction of electron motion in graphene exposed to radiation has long remained a point of controversy, as there is an abundance of factors pulling it in different directions. The controversy was especially stark in the case of the photocurrent caused by terahertz radiation.

Researchers from the Russia-based Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology ('MIPT') have developed biosensor chips of unprecedented sensitivity, which are based on copper combined with graphene oxide instead of the conventionally used gold. In addition to making the device somewhat cheaper, this innovation will facilitate the manufacturing process.

The Russian research team's biosensing chip reportedly achieved unmatched sensitivity, and yet its configuration is mostly standard and therefore compatible with existing commercial biosensors, e.g. Biacore, Reichert, BioNavis, or BiOptix.

Researchers at the Department of Chemistry of the University of Warsaw in Poland have developed a new graphene matrix, as a functional substrate for immobilizing enzymes, and the method of its preparation. The newly-patented graphene matrix may find applications in the food and medicine industries, like the production of biosensors and other electronic devices (eg. bands, tattoos).

Diagram of a lactate biosensor composed of a graphene matrix and a lactate oxidase enzyme, deposited on a carbon electrode

The invention is used as a stable system with high sensitivity, not only in analytical biosensors, but also in bio-fuel cells used in medicine, biology and chemical biocatalysis. The solution concerns the enzymatic (protein) sensor construction for detection of lactates, which can be used in the food industry and medicine for the production of biosensors.

Chalmers University in Sweden has launched a project, which received Vinnova funding, to design a graphene-based speaker membrane that would be stiff and capable of efficiently dissipating the exceeding heat of the speaker.

A cellulose-graphene composite will be designed, capitalizing on the intrinsic properties of the materials. To demonstrate this, Chalmers plans to use a commercial paper loudspeaker membrane modified with the composite. This way it will be possible to modify any size of paper cones from small 20 mm (tweeters) up to 460 mm (18 woofers) with the same technology, while offering the possibility of decreasing the distortion.

U.S-based startup Urbix Resources has announced closing its Series A round of financing with an oversubscribed commitment of $3.5 million USD. The Company states that in addition to current investors and management, this round included an international investment from a management company based in Mexico.

It was gratifying to find ourselves in a position where our funding objectives were oversubscribed, comments Executive Chairman Nico Cuevas. This allows us to focus on our main initiatives including the construction of our low-cost/clean tech pilot purification facility and the construction of our proprietary pristine graphene reactor. This leads us to our goal of bringing graphene at a commercial scale to the market at about $1 per gram.

Researchers at the India-based Uttarakhand Residential University, RI Instruments and Innovationin have developed a new graphene-based technology to prevent vehicles from operating if the driver is drunk. To be more exact, the jointly developed device will make driving difficult if the driver is in an inebriated condition or feeling drowsy or is speaking on the mobile phone.

The prototype will be based on graphene generated from waste products and wild grasses as one of the components. Graphene has an important role in the device as graphene-coated electrodes can catalyze the process of oxidation of ethyl alcohol into acetic acid. The concentration of alcohol will automatically disconnect the device, the team said.