Graphene batteries: Introduction and Market News - Page 49

In April 2013 XG Sciences launched new graphene-based anode materials for Li-Ion batteries that has four times the capacity of conventional anodes. The new anode materials use the XG's xGnP graphene nanoplatelets to stabilize silicon particles in a nano-engineered composite structure. Today XG Sciences has been awarded $1 million in funding from the US Department of Energy (DOE) for continued development of these lithium-ion battery materials.

XG Sciences says that their anode materials offer battery manufacturers opportunities to create batteries with much greater energy storage capacity without significantly increasing the battery size. The DOE funded a two-year program, during which XGS will lead a multifunctional research team that includes battery maker A123 Systems and the Georgia Institute of Technology, who will participate in prototype cell build, testing, and advanced characterization and analysis.

Researchers from Korea's Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology in Korea developed high-performance supercapacitors based on graphene. They say these capacitors can store almost as much energy as a Li-Ion battery and can charge/discharge in seconds. They also last for many tens of thousands of charging cycles.

The researchers use a highly porous graphene that has a huge internal surface area. To fabricate this material they reduced graphene oxide with hydrazine in water agitated with ultrasound. This results in a graphene powder that they then packed into a cell shaped like a cell and dried it at 140 degrees Celsius under pressure for five hour. The material was used as an electrode.

Researchers from Korea's Ulsan institute developed a high performance Oxygen Reduction Reaction (ORR) electrocatalyst using chemical functionalized (doped) graphene oxide. ORR electrocatalysts, which split hydrogen gas to make electricity are critical components in fuel cells and some batteries.

The researchers used covalent functionalization of various small organic molecules with a subsequent thermal treatment, which resulted in thin films. The researchers say they achieved a simple approach to introduce nitrogen atoms on graphene oxide sheets, without a toxic gas precursor and with a good doping degree control.

Researchers from India's VIT University combined studied a new hybrid material made from PVC and graphene-oxide (GO). They say that the GO enhances the properties of PVC and makes it useful as battery electrode material, and also for membranes and coating applications.

The researchers combined polyvinyl chloride (PVC) with graphene oxide using the colloidal blending method. The new composites were studied using several methods (including AFM, SEM, TEM and more) and it was found that the GO have been dispersed homogeneously throughout the PVC matrix, and the original research paper includes many measurements and analysis data.

Researchers at Purdue University are developing a new graphene "nanopetals" mass production process. Those nanopetals are graphene-based vertical nanostructures that look like tiny rose petals, and they have applications in sensors, heat-management, supercapacitors and batteries. This research is funded with a $1.5 million grant from the NSF.

The researchers hope to increase the production speed of nanopetal-coated surfaces to 10 square meters per hour, using a roll-to-roll process. This is a dramatic increase to current "laboratory-scale" production rate. The new process will use a vacuum-based plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD).

Researchers from Korea's KAIST institute developed a lithium-air rechargeable battery using a nano fiber graphene composite catalyst. This battery has five times greater storage compared to current lithium-ion batteries, and is the highest performing lithium-air battery ever developed. Such batteries may enable electric vehicle to travel almost a 1,000 kilometers on a single charge.

Lithium-Air battery uses lithium on the cathode and oxygen on the anode. Such batteries has been researched for a long time as they are cheap to make and are lighter than lithium-ion batteries. But they are difficult to commercialize because they suffer from short lifespan (because of high resistance during the charge-discharge process). This new battery has a new catalyst made by mixing cobalt oxide nano fiber and graphene. This not just increased the storage, but also resulted in good lifespan - over 80 recharge cycles with capacity greater than 100mAh/g.

Aixtron announced today that the University of Massachusetts (UMass) ordered a BM-4 deposition system for processing 4-inch substrates. The BM-4 was shipped to the University’s Emerging Technologies and Innovation Center (ETIC).

The system will be used for the integration of carbon nanotubes (CNT) and graphene into a large variety of electronic applications ranging from high frequency transistors, energy storage and flexible electronics. Aixtron says that the BM is a highly flexible system which can deposit both graphene and CNT materials with precisely controlled critical surface dimensions. The BM system also features automatic process control, easy recipe editing, an integrated process camera and remote operation via TCP/IP networking.

The Korean Intellectual Property Office posted some interesting figures today. They report that Korean companies are securing essential patents related to the commercialization of graphene - and several companies are making inroads into graphene production and manufacturing transparent graphene-based displays.

Between 2005 and June 2013 a total of 2,921 graphene-related patents have been applied for in Korea, and the rate is accelerating quickly. 93% of those patents have been applied for by Korean individuals and organizations.

Researchers from Sweden have shown how nano-scrolls can be created by doping graphene with nitrogen and adding magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles. This new material may have very good properties for application as electrodes (for Li-Ion batteries and other devices).

To create the scrolls, the researchers doped graphene with nitrogen atoms. This enable them to anchor iron oxide particles using a solution process. The process enables to control the type of iron oxide nanoparticles that are formed on the graphene surface. It's possible to form a hematite (the reddish form of iron oxide that often is found in nature) or maghemite (a less stable and more magnetic form of iron oxide).

CVD Equipment and Norway's Graphene Batteries signed a joint-IP development agreement to develop a binder-less graphene-based lithium battery electrodes and related novel battery designs. The two companies call the new technology NanotoMacro.

Graphene Batteries, who will lead the design and testing of the new technology says that CVD's electrode manufacturing technology will help them achieve an electrode with a higher energy density, enhanced charging time and longer lifetime - and at a cost reduction of 30%.