Membranes - Page 11

The Chinese mobile phone maker Xiaomi recently launched a new in-ear headphones, called ‘Piston 3 Pro’, that according to reports from various websites and blogs makes use of a ‘graphene diaphragm’ that helps in producing more natural sounds. The use of graphene, however, was not mentioned in the Xiaomi official website.

We are quite skeptical about the presence of an actual graphene membrane that enhances the sound quality in this product; It seems possible that Xiaomi is using some form of graphene added to the product but we will wait to find a more formal explanation as to what its role actually is, if any.

Graphenea, the Spain-based graphene producer, has teamed up with scientists from the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands to design graphene-based "mechanical pixels" that could, among other applications, be someday used as colored pixels in e-readers and other low-powered screens.

In these "graphene balloons", a double layer of graphene (two atoms thick) is deposited on top of circular indents cut into silicon. The graphene membranes enclose air inside the cavities, and the position of the membranes can be changed by applying a pressure difference between the inside and the outside. When the membranes are closer to the silicon they appear blue; when the membranes are pushed away they appear red.

Researchers from Seoul National University and the University of Manchester have found that a graphene coating on biological samples helps dissipate the charge build-up that tends to occur on the surface of these samples during non-destructive electron microscopy imaging. Such build-ups are often damaging and prevent high-resolution images from being obtained.

Currently used gold or platinum coatings mean that researchers cannot obtain high-resolution images of the samples or perform further quantitative and qualitative chemical analyses with techniques such as energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). Now, the research team discovered that a layer of graphene on biological samples can dissipate the charge accumulation on the non-conducting surfaces of biological samples thanks to the high electrical conductivity of graphene. The researchers explain that as soon as excessive charges appear on the sample surfaces, the graphene membrane provides conducting channels for these charges to disappear quickly and so allows to obtain high-resolution EM images. Furthermore, the high thermal conductivity of graphene allows it to dissipate excess heat produced by the high-energy electrons in the microscope, thus preventing thermal damage or deformation of biological specimens as well.

Talga Resources has announced that commissioning of all stages of the Phase 2 German pilot test facility has been successfully completed.

In April 2016, Talga announced the commissioning of its Phase 2 processing plant in Germany and has now provided further updates. The pilot test plant is currently configured so that approximately 76% of the input graphitic carbon reports to graphene products (FLG and GNP) and the remaining carbon reports to Talga’s building sector (micrographite) products.

Talga Resources has outlined its updated commercialization strategy. It is seeking to unlock early commercialization opportunities based on the production of four specific graphene products for use within targeted industrial markets. The development of these product lines is in addition to the supply of raw graphene and graphite materials which has been the Company’s focus to date.

The new strategy is reportedly a progression made possible by the growth of Talga’s pilot plant facility in Germany. Recent equipment scale up and a significant boost to the Company’s technical team enables this new ‘applied products’ capability and expedited path to associated sources of revenue.

Researchers at MIT and Harvard University fabricated nanoscrolls made from graphene oxide flakes for water purification applications, at a much lower cost than that of graphene membranes. The team was able to control the dimensions of each nanoscroll, using both low- and high-frequency ultrasonic techniques.

The researchers say that these nanoscrolls could also be used as ultralight chemical sensors, drug delivery vehicles, and hydrogen storage platforms, in addition to water filters. Also, the ability to tune the dimensions of these architectures may open a window to industry, in combination with the more affordable production costs.

Researchers from the US and Australia used graphene oxide to design a filter that allows water and other liquids to be filtered nine times faster than the current leading commercial filter, by developing a viscous form of graphene oxide that could be spread very thinly with a blade.

The researchers explain that this technique creates a uniform arrangement in the graphene, and that evenness gives the filter special properties; The filter can capture viruses and bacteria - in fact, anything larger than one nanometer cannot get through the graphene layer.

The Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) has opened the doors of a Graphene Centre that aims to help companies develop, prove and commercialize products using graphene technologies. The Graphene Centre was funded by Innovate UK to support the commercial growth of the UK graphene industry and operates two specialized facilities at NETPark in Sedgefield, County Durham.

It has a dedicated laboratory for the functionalization and characterization of Graphene at a significant scale, which is produced by a variety of process routes. The second facility is based in CPI’s printable electronics facility and is focused on device development and testing covering membranes, sensors, energy and electronic applications.

The University of Manchester and The Masdar Institute of Science and Technology declared a collaborative research program covering three innovative projects in graphene and 2D materials: composites, sensors and membranes.

The projects will be led by faculty members from both research institutions, and will respectively explore the development of novel low-density graphene-based foams for various engineering applications, inkjet-printed graphene micro-sensors for energy and defense applications, and graphene-enabled ion exchange membranes for desalination. 

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have simulated a new concept for rapid, accurate gene sequencing by pulling a DNA molecule through a tiny hole in graphene and detecting changes in electrical current. This new method might ultimately be faster and cheaper than conventional DNA sequencing.

The study suggests that the method could identify about 66 billion bases (the smallest units of genetic information) per second with 90% accuracy and no false positives. Conventional sequencing involves separating, copying, labeling and reassembling pieces of DNA to read the genetic information. The new NIST way offers a twist on the more recent "nanopore sequencing" idea of pulling DNA through a hole in specific materials, originally a protein. This concept is based on the passage of electrically charged particles (ions) through the pore and poses challenges such as unwanted electrical noise and inadequate selectivity.