Graphene EMI Shielding: Introduction and Market News - Page 3

A collaboration between two innovative material technology startups Graphmatech and Add North 3D (a Swedish 3D materials developer specialized in FDM materials) has developed novel conductive Aros Graphene-based filaments for 3D printing. This may open up many new different 3D-printing applications such as thermal management components, circuit boards and efficient electromagnetic and radio frequency shielding.

The recently developed 3D-printing technology based on Graphematech's Aros Graphene may grant the ability to control the exact level of conductivity of the filament. The new filaments will now be optimized and go through beta testing with a reference group before it is expected to reach the market in 6-12 month.

Australia-based advanced materials company Talga Resources has reported high levels of electrical conductivity in concrete by using an additive developed from the Company’s graphene-graphite research and development laboratory in the UK.

(L) Talga concrete sample after melting 5cm depth of ice from 9v power. (R) Conceptual underfloor heating/road application.

The reported breakthrough offers substantial potential in existing and emerging industrial applications, particularly as concrete is the world’s largest construction material by volume. Talga shared information gathered from tests that show that the graphene-enhanced concrete is highly electrically conductive - attaining 0.05 ohm.cm volume resistivity.

The PolyGraph project, a 4-year development project with aims to develop new production techniques to deliver industrial scale quantities of graphene-reinforced thermosetting polymers, has published its results.

The POLYGRAPH (Up-Scaled Production of Graphene Reinforced Thermosetting Polymers for Composite, Coating and Adhesive Applications) project brought together 14 partners, including SMEs, companies, universities and a research center, and has reportedly led to the identification of the most suitable materials and production techniques for graphene-based coatings, adhesives and composites. Once the graphene market reaches maturity and material prices drop , these new products could appeal to a vast range of industries.

Researchers at Seoul National University, Graphene Square and Interojo have shown that graphene-coated contact lenses could protect eyes from electromagnetic radiation and dehydration and be used in various healthcare and wearable technologies.

The researchers began by synthesizing a graphene layer on a copper foil using CVD. They then transferred the carbon sheet onto the surface of a contact lens with the help of a polymer layer after etching the copper. "Thanks to its outstanding flexibility, graphene can be coated on the convex lens surface and conform to it," explains the team.

Grafoid, a leading graphene R&D and investment company, announced its entry into the global industrial coatings market with the introduction of its patent pending GrafeneX graphene coatings technology. Grafoid describes the GrafeneX technologies as a cost-effective way of laying down graphene coatings on large surface areas.

GrafeneX is a novel technology that creates a platform for the deposition of graphene and chemically functionalized graphene coatings. This process provides Grafoid with the capability to apply its diverse graphene-based coatings to many different types of material substrates with controllable levels of surface coverage, thickness etc. to meet precise end user requirements.

Graphene 3D Lab, a leader in the development, manufacturing and marketing of proprietary composites and coatings based on graphene and other advanced materials, recently announced the release of a new product. The Company will now offer a filament for 3D printing that is both highly electrically conductive and flexible.

G3L reports that the enhanced properties of this product make it ideal for applications involving flexible sensors, electromagnetic/radiofrequency shielding, flexible conductive traces and electrodes to be used in wearable electronics. This new material will be available for purchase in 1.75mm diameter 100 gram spools at the Company's on-line store, www.blackmagic3D.com, under the trade name of "Conductive Flexible TPU Filament".

Last week the Graphene-Info team visited the MWC - the world's largest mobile technologies conference held in Barcelona, which this year included a graphene pavilion, organized by the ICFO and the Graphene Flagship, Europe's $1 billion research project initiative.

One of the companies showcased in the pavilion was the Italy-based GNext, that demonstrated its graphene-based ink, used for rapid fabrication of electronic devices. GNext's ink can be printed using many common techniques on a wide range of substrates, including biopolymers such as PLA, and achieving a volume resistivity below 4 ohm/sq/mil.

Last week Barcelona hosted the Mobile World Congress trade show, and it was a very large and impressive conference - with over 100,000 visitors and thousands of exhibiting companies. This year the MWC included a graphene pavilion, organized by the ICFO and the Graphene Flagship, Europe's $1 billion research project initiative.

The Graphene Pavilion was very impressive, with several companies showcasing real graphene products and prototype devices, and also several research groups from leading Universities. The Pavilion consisted of 11 companies and 9 research centers - and you could see graphene materials, graphene supercapacitors (From Zap&Go, soon to hit the market), large graphene EMI shielding films (from GNext), graphene sensors and graphene-based RFID tags and antennas. In the photo below you can see an air quality prototype sensor made from graphene developed by Libre SRL (PiAndBi).

Haydale announced that its composites division Haydale Composite Solutions (HCS) has entered into a joint development and commercialisation agreement with Scott Bader Company, a global supplier of liquid resins, gel coats and adhesives.

Under the agreement, HCS will functionalize Graphene Nano Platelets utilising its proprietary HDPlas® process and add them to Scott Bader’s Crestapol resin to create a highly loaded masterbatch. This masterbatch will then be diluted down by Scott Bader and HCS into a range of concentrations from 1% to 8% and cast into resin plaques which will then be tested to quantify any improvements in mechanical, physical, electrical and thermal performance.

Ohio-based Angstron Materials has developed a group of cost-effective thermal foil products that can be customized for handheld devices and other products. The company says that its foil sheets have been qualified for use by a major mobile electronics company. Such thermal foils can be used for the technology beneath devices' screens that conducts heat away from internal electronic components and batteries to help maintain optimal performance.

Angstron’s thermal foils are available in a variety of grades. The company states that its foils are thinner than other products on the market and so give manufacturers greater design flexibility than competing methods. Angstron’s foil sheets also can be sourced with equivalent or greater thermal conductivity.