Graphene Inks: introduction and market status

Haydale has announced that it has been awarded SMART Flexible Innovation Support ("SMART FIS") from The Welsh Government to accelerate the development of its graphene underfloor heating product and range of biomedical sensor inks.

As part of a new innovation strategy for Wales, aimed at supporting Welsh industry by increased investment in research, development, and innovation, SMART FIS will provide Haydale with funding totaling £182,843 over a two-year period. Part of this funding will enable Haydale to accelerate the development of its prototype graphene underfloor heating ("UFH") towards a market-ready CE product that can be tested in a home environment. It will support continued engagement with partners such as City Energy Network Ltd and Plumbase.

LayerOne (formerly  Abalonyx) and SINTEF  (a Norway-based research institute) have secured funding from The Norwegian Research Council for the development of innovative, scalable and sustainable conductive inks based on reduced graphene oxide (rGO). The rGO-based inks promise improved electrical conductivity and stability surpassing traditional carbon-based inks and offering a less toxic and more cost-effective alternative to metal-based inks.

The research project is a result of LayerOne’s recent breakthrough in developing a new grade of rGO with an electrical conductivity two orders of magnitude greater than standard rGO grades. In the project, LayerOne will supply the advanced rGO materials while SINTEF will leverage and build on its experience from recently concluded projects on printed electronics to develop the new conductive inks.

Scientists from Imperial College London and Catania University & CNR-IMM have developed a novel graphene ink that can be used to detect a variety of chemical substances when layered on top of commercially available printed circuit boards (PCBs) as a thin film.

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In their recent paper, the team demonstrated a novel and versatile sensing platform, based on electrolyte-gated graphene field-effect transistors, for easy, low-cost and scalable production of chemical sensor test strips. The Lab-on-PCB platform is enabled by low-boiling, low-surface-tension sprayable graphene ink deposited on a substrate manufactured using a commercial printed circuit board process. 

Haydale has announced it is working with City Energy Network Limited and Plumbase Limited on developing and distributing its graphene underfloor heating ("UFH").

The ink heater technology applied to clothing worn by British athletes at the Tokyo Games has been applied in an initial prototype for domestic UFH with the potential to replace gas central heating and link into other energy efficient technologies.

Versarien has announced the launch of Umbro's ProTraining Elite range, including garments incorporating the Company's Graphene-Wear technology.

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Versarien has been working with Umbro since 2018 and these are the first products to be launched in Europe incorporating the Company's technology.  Umbro's new ProTraining Elite long-sleeve running tops, baselayers and running tights have Versarien's Graphene-Wear ink formula printed on the inside.  The Graphene-Wear formula features novel properties that will allow wearers to experience enhanced thermal transmittance, increased moisture management, with improved drying rate, without compromising air or water vapor permeability.  In particular, these three garments will benefit significantly from applying Graphene-Wear as they are being worn in circumstances where maintaining core body temperature is more desirable and difficult to achieve.  The garments also have Versarien's Graphene-Wear trademark applied.

UK-based graphene developer Haydale announced its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 31 December 2022 (H1 FY2023). Revenues were £1.78 million (up 50% from H1 FY2022), and operating loss was £1.89 million (up from £1.75 million in 2022). At the end of the year, Haydale had £2.97 million, following a successful fund raise of  £5.14 million in September 2022.

The updates that it is starting to sell its biomedical inks in Europe, with advanced trials being conducted by several parties which include electronic blood glucose reader compatibility tests. 

Graphene Flagship Partners University of Cambridge (UK) and Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB, Belgium) collaborated with the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC, United Arab Emirates) and the European Space Agency (ESA) to test graphene on the Moon. This joint effort sees the involvement of many international partners, such as Airbus Defense and Space, Khalifa University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Technische Universität Dortmund, University of Oslo, and Tohoku University.

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The MASER15 launch. Credit: John-Charles Dupin/Eurekalert

The Rashid rover is planned to be launched today (30 November 2022) from Cape Canaveral in Florida and will land on a geologically rich and, as yet, only remotely explored area on the Moon’s nearside – the side that always faces the Earth. During one lunar day, equivalent to approximately 14 days on Earth, Rashid will move on the lunar surface investigating interesting geological features.

This is a sponsored post by GrapheneUP

Population growth and improved living standards require solutions for textiles with new functions to meet changing needs. Wherever they are used, graphene-based smart textiles provide added value in terms of improved performance or comfort. GrapheneUP®, a leading graphene company with the largest production of few-layer graphene in Europe, has developed and introduced into the market new graphene-based products for textile industry: INKGUP® Fabric and PRINTGUP®.

INKGUP® Fabric is graphene-based coating formulation for textile industry produced with few-layer graphene GUP®, designed to provide superior finishing properties. This formulation has been certified antiviral (ISO 18184:2019) also for SARS-CoV-2, antistatic and with excellent abrasion resistance and thermal regulation properties.

Several properties of textiles are improved using the formulations developed with GrapheneUP®, in particular the thermal regulation, abrasion resistance, EMI shielding, UV protection, excellent electrical conductivity, antibacterial and antiviral properties.

HydroGraph Clean Power has launched its patented graphene ink. The Company sees this development as a significant step toward the production of inexpensive, foldable, and wearable electronics.

This is a significant milestone in renewable technology production. From touch screen displays, biosensors, radio frequency identification tags, electric vehicle batteries, and more, the technology’s applications are vast, said Stuart Jara, HydroGraph chief executive officer.

Versarien has announced that its Graphene-Wear technology will be incorporated in Umbro's top-of-the-range Pro-Training Kit for the Spring/Summer collection 2023. Umbro and Versarien have been working on several projects since 2018, and this is the first one that will reach the market.

Versarien and Umbro say that the Graphene-Wear formula will enable wearers to experience enhanced thermal transmittance, increased moisture management and drying rate of the garments. The garments will have Versarien's Graphene-Wear trademark applied.