University of Manchester - Page 8

Two teams from the University of Manchester are the winners of a £70,000 prize for novel applications of graphene. Both teams are addressing key societal challenges on future energy and food security: seeking breakthroughs by using 2D materials to produce hydrogen to generate energy, and by designing polymer hydrogels to increase food production.

The Eli and Britt Harari Enterprise Award, in association with Nobel Laureate Sir Andre Geim, is awarded each year to help commercialize graphene concepts from Manchester University students, researchers and graduates. The prize is supported by former Manchester physics student, Dr. Eli Harari, founder of global flash-memory giant, SanDisk

Researchers from the University of Geneva (UNIGE) in Switzerland and the University of Manchester in the UK have found an efficient way to control infrared and terahertz waves using graphene. "There exist a class of the so-called Dirac materials, where the electrons behave as if they do not have a mass, similar to light particles, the photons," explains Alexey Kuzmenko, a researcher at the Department of Quantum Matter Physics in UNIGE's Science Faculty, who co-conducted this research together with Ievgeniia Nedoliuk.

The interaction between graphene and light suggests that this material could be used to control infrared and terahertz waves. "That would be a huge step forward for optoelectronics, security, telecommunications and medical diagnostics," points out the Switzerland-based researcher.

ZEN Graphene Solutions has announced that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with The University of Manchester in the UK.

The purpose of the MOU is to explore opportunities of collaboration in the areas of development and commercialization of graphene and other 2D materials and accelerate the adoption of these materials into commercially viable markets.

Researchers at the National Graphene Institute (NGI) have created a method to produce scalable graphene-based yarn. Such e-textiles may have great potential for sportswear, healthcare, aerospace, and fitness applications, and so are attracting research attention worldwide.

Integrating textile-based sensors into garments in the manufacturing process is still time-consuming and complex. It is also expensive non-biodegradable, unstable, metallic conductive materials are still being used. Now, the NGI researchers have developed a process that has the potential to produce tonnes of conductive graphene-based yarn. It is possible to do this using current textile machinery without any addition to production costs. The produces graphene-based yarn is also said to be flexible, cheap, biodegradable, and washable.

Scientists from Manchester University, the Ulsan National Institute of Science & Technology and the Korea Institute of Science and Technology have developed a novel technology, which combines the fabrication procedures of planar and vertical heterostructures in order to assemble graphene-based single-electron transistors.

The schematic structure of the devices

In the study, it was demonstrated that high-quality graphene quantum dots (GQDs), regardless of whether they were ordered or randomly distributed, could be successfully synthesized in a matrix of monolayer hexagonal boron nitride (hBN). Here, the growth of GQDs within the layer of hBN was shown to be catalytically supported by the platinum (Pt) nanoparticles distributed in-between the hBN and supporting oxidised silicon (SiO₂) wafer, when the whole structure was treated by the heat in the methane gas (CH₄). It was also shown, that due to the same lattice structure (hexagonal) and small lattice mismatch (~1.5%) of graphene and hBN, graphene islands grow in the hBN with passivated edge states, thereby giving rise to the formation of defect-less quantum dots embedded in the hBN monolayer.

LifeSaver, a UK-based manufacturer of portable and reusable water filtration systems, has announced an exclusive contract with the National Graphene Institute (NGI) at The University of Manchester.

The 18-month research project will focus on developing graphene technology that can be used for enhanced water filtration, with the goal of creating a proprietary and patented, cutting-edge product capable of eliminating an even wider range of hazardous contaminants than currently removed by its existing high-performance ultra-filtration process.

University of Manchester researcher, Dr Thomas Waigh, has developed a technology that may make living cells and tissues more visible during analysis through the addition of graphene oxide (GO). The use of a GO GO coating to microscopy slides was found to improve both fluorescence imaging contrast and resolution.

Dr Waigh said: My team has developed technology which uses monomolecular sheets of GO to coat microscopy slides, thereby eliminating background fluorescence and improving the resolution of images. "It’s an important breakthrough as GO is cheap and easy to manufacture in large quantities. The cost to coat each slide is estimated to be 12 pence".

Australia-based biotechnology company Circa Group has announced that UK-based University of Manchester has successfully produced graphene ink using Circa's bio-based solvent Cyrene. Circa said academics have described the material as the highest quality conductive graphene ink ever reported.

Currently, one of the most common and successful ways of producing graphene involves exfoliating graphite using sonication - a process in which sound waves are used to agitate particles in solution. This requires toxic solvents, which has led scientists to seek alternative production methods. According to Circa, the University of Manchester has now successfully produced graphene ink with Cyrene. The company also said that work by the University of York and the Spanish National Research Council showed that Cyrene had near-ideal physical properties for graphite exfoliation and the production of graphene dispersions.

The collaboration between the University of Manchester and British sportswear brand Inov-8, which started in 2017 and has already produced the G-Series range of graphene-enhanced shoes, has now also resulted in a pair of hiking boots which utilize graphene.

Building on the above-mentioned use of graphene in trail running and fitness shoes last summer, Inov-8 is now bringing the technology to a market it considers to have been "starved of innovation". Two ROCLITE boots with graphene-enhanced rubber grip have been produced the ROCLITE 335 and the ROCLITE 345 GTX. The former offers increased warmth on cold days, while the latter has waterproof GORE-TEX protection for hiking adventures in wet conditions.

The Graphene Innovation center, a £60 million world-class center dedicated to researching graphene and its applications has been opened in Manchester.

The Graphene Engineering Innovation Center (GEIC) at the University of Manchester will accelerate the commercial impact of graphene and help realize its potential to revolutionize many sectors.