Graphene Aerogel

Researchers at the University of Cambridge and the University of Warwick have developed a fully 3D-printed quantum dot/graphene-based aerogel sensor for highly sensitive and real-time recognition of formaldehyde at room temperature. Formaldehyde is a known human carcinogen that is a common indoor air pollutant. However, its real-time and selective recognition from interfering gases has thus far remained challenging, especially for low-power sensors suffering from noise and baseline drift. 

The new sensor uses artificial intelligence techniques to detect formaldehyde in real time at concentrations as low as eight parts per billion, far beyond the sensitivity of most indoor air quality sensors.

Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) and Tel Aviv University in Israel, have developed a graphene oxide-doped silica aerogel adsorbent that can remove trace pollutants from wastewater.

This graphene-modified silica aerogel reportedly removes over 76% of trace pollutants (PPM level) in continuous flow conditions, offering a sustainable path for large-scale water purification. The research team is dedicated to enhancing these results for large-scale applications.

A team of researchers from Stanford University and the University of California, Berkeley are reportedly leveraging the International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory to produce higher-quality graphene aerogel than is possible on Earth.

It was announced that this week, the Crew-6 astronauts onboard the space station completed work on the team’s investigation, which was funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF). The results could provide new insights into the underlying physics of graphene aerogel synthesis and lead to the development of novel material products.

A team of researchers, led by Professor Aravind Vijayaraghavan based in the National Graphene Institute (NGI), have produced 3D particles made of graphene that come in various interesting shapes, using a variation of the vortex ring effect. These particles have also been shown to be exceptionally efficient in adsorbing contaminants from water, thereby purifying it.

Optical and SEM images of donut, spherical and jellyfish morphologies of GO-VR

The researchers have shown that the formation of these graphene particles is governed by a complex interplay between different forces such as viscosity, surface tension, inertia and electrostatics. Prof Vijayaraghavan said: “We have undertaken a systematic study to understand and explain the influence of various parameters and forces involved in the particle formation. Then, by tailoring this process, we have developed very efficient particles for adsorptive purification of contaminants from water”.

An ESA project with Adamant Composites in Greece tested how the addition of graphene (and other nano-sized materials) can optimize a satellite’s thermal and electrical properties.

The airless vacuum of space is a place where a satellite can be hot and cold at the same time, with part of it in sunlight and the rest in the shade. Scientists work to minimize temperature extremes within a satellite’s body, because heat buildups might lead to parts going out of alignment or even buckling. Another undesirable outcome in highly-insulating vacuum conditions is for satellite surfaces to build up electrical charge, which may eventually result in disruptive or damaging discharge events. Composite materials are increasingly supplanting traditional metal parts aboard satellites, but these polymer-based materials possess lower thermal and electrical conductivity, compounding such problems.

Researchers from China's Jiangsu University and Changzhou University have developed a non-ceramic solid-state electrolyte based on a graphene oxide (GO) aerogel framework filled with polyethylene oxide.

Li-ion batteries currently perform a key role in electric cars, but contain combustible liquid electrolytic materials which may pose major safety issues. The solid-state electrolyte (SSE) can replace the standard organic liquid electrolyte and is predicted to address safety issues such as leaking, heat runaway, and even explosions during operation.

Researchers at the University of Bath, in collaboration with industrial partner Integrated Graphene, have developed a sensing technique based on graphene foam, for the detection of glucose levels in the blood.

The newly developed sensor is a chemical one instead of enzyme-based, which makes the technology robust, with a long shelf-life and more sensitive to lower glucose concentrations compared to current systems.

Lyten, an advanced materials company developing lithium-sulfur battery technology based on Lyten 3D Graphene, has announced that it secured a prototype Other Transaction (OT) agreement in support of the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) around high-specific energy storage and management solutions.

A core objective of the agreement is to demonstrate a lithium-sulfur (Li-S) battery solution that will significantly increase the duty cycle of small satellites for the U.S. Space Force, which is one of many applications for the new Li-S battery technology. The ultimate goal of the effort is to develop a lithium-sulfur rechargeable battery capable of three times the energy storage capacity of current lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries, enabling the use of higher duty cycle spacecraft and those that function longer during an eclipse.

Graphene Composites (GC) has announced a research and development partnership with Advanced Blast & Ballistic Systems (ABBS), a leading developer of active systems for protecting armored vehicles from mine and IED blasts.

The partnership will focus on the use of GC’s nanomaterials engineering technologies particularly GC Shield® technology to improve blast and ballistic protection performance of its systems, with testing and FEA modelling which explores the use of graphene enhanced materials as a part of its continued development of the underbelly blast plate.

An international research team, led by Germany's Kiel University (CAU) and including scientists from the University of Southern Denmark, Technische Universität Dresden, University of Trento, Sixonia Tech and Queen Mary University of London, has used aero-graphene to develop a new method for the generation of controllable electrical explosions. "Aerographene" consists of a finely-structured tubular network based on graphene with numerous cavities. This makes it extremely stable, conductive and almost as lightweight as air.

The research team has now taken a major step toward practical applications. They have succeeded in repeatedly heating and cooling aerographene and the air contained inside it to very high temperatures in an extremely short period of time. This enables extremely powerful pumps, compressed air applications or sterilizing air filters in miniature.