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.

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.

Haydale has announced that it has been awarded funding of £186,403 by Innovate UK, the UK's innovation agency, to develop smart composite tooling for the aerospace industry using functionalized nanomaterials.

The ESENSE project (Out-of-autoclave self-heated tooling enabling temperature homogeneity and embedded graphene sensors) aims to enhance out-of-autoclave (OOA) manufacturing processes with monitoring and through-life sensing capabilities using Haydale's patented HDPlas functionalization process to develop high temperature inks and pressure sensors. The project is due to start in April 2022 and is expected to run for 24 months.

In December 2020, Advanced Material Development (AMD) announced that it secured its first contract under the Defense Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) Weapons Sector Research Framework (WSRF), worth £125,000 (around USD$166,700). Since then, AMD received a further award for its ongoing collaborative camouflage work with the United States Army.

Now, AMD announced that it has received further funding from the Office of the Secretary of Defense for its proprietary ChamEM signature management program collaboration with the US Army.

Researchers from China’s Harbin Institute of Technology have 3D printed a soft robot from graphene-oxide that is capable of moving backward and forwards when exposed to moisture.

The scientists combined Direct Ink Writing (DIW) 3D printing and constrained drying techniques to fabricate the soft robot, and were able to overcome the porosity, shrinkage and structure uniformity challenges previously observed when 3D printing graphene-oxide objects.

Haydale has announced it will be collaborating with Cadent Gas and the Energy Innovation Centre to develop graphene ink-based heaters for low-power hot water. The £135,000 three-stage project will run for an initial 15 months.

The graphene solution has the potential to offer a low-power way to heat water when there is an interruption to the gas supply. Currently, the provision of fan heaters and hot plates to vulnerable customers without a gas supply can be expensive and challenging, particularly for elderly or disabled customers.

Haydale has announced that it has been awarded a SMARTCymru grant from The Welsh Government that will enable the Company to progress with the development of its anti-counterfeiting ink technology, PATit.

The Project has a total cost of £169,000 and is expected to take six months to complete. The SMARTCymru grant, which is part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund, will cover about 50% of the anticipated project costs.

Versarien announced its interim financial results for the six months ended 30 September, 2021. Revenues were £3.82 million (up 41% from £2.71 million in H1 2020), while reported net loss was reduced to £3.11 million (down from £4.34 million in H1 2020). At the end of the period, Versarien had £3.46 million in cash and equivalents.

The company is now focused on two main application areas, textiles and concrete - for which it sees excellent opportunities in the near future. Versarien is increasing its production capacity. It has recently acquired graphene manufacturing assets in Spain, which will provide an additional 100 annual ton capacity, it has ordered equipment that will enable it to increase graphene ink production capacity by 12,000 liters per year and it has signed a lease on a new dedicated graphene production facility in Gloucestershire.