Aerospace

Solidion Technology begins trading on NASDAQ, aims to advance eVTOL aircraft with graphene-enhanced batteries

Solidion Technology, an advanced battery technology solutions developer, began trading on NASDAQ (ticker symbol “STI”) on February 5, 2024. Solidion is the merged entity between Honeycomb Battery Company (HBC, Dayton, Ohio) and Nubia Brand International Co., a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), based in Dallas, Texas.

Some see electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft as the next urban transportation technology breakthrough. At the heart of an eVTOL aircraft is a heavy battery pack. The amount of energy that can be stored in a battery pack with a reduced mass must be significantly increased before the eVTOL industry can literally take off. It is estimated that eVTOL aircraft needs a battery system with a gravimetric energy density > 400 Wh/kg. For an air taxi to carry more passengers, a battery cell energy density higher than 450 or even 500 Wh/kg will be required.

Read the full story Posted: Mar 07,2024

Graphene Innovations Manchester and Space Engine Systems to collaborate on graphene-enhanced hypersonic applications for space travel

UK-based Graphene Innovations Manchester (GIM) and Space Engine Systems (SES) from Canada have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate in various areas of SES’s Hello series of Aerospace and Space vehicles, focusing on using graphene for hypersonic applications.

GIM is working on the development and commercialization of advanced graphene-based solutions for composites, particularly in Graphene Space Habitat,
and also Type V hydrogen storage tanks. GIM is the largest Tier 1 partner in the Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre (GEIC) at the University of Manchester.

Read the full story Posted: Feb 15,2024

Stanford and UC Berkeley teams produce graphene aerogel in space

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.

Read the full story Posted: Aug 25,2023

AMD announces additional contract with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Advanced Material Development (AMD) has announced signing a further contract with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). AMD’s Radar absorbing technology is now being incorporated by AMD into foam panels and will be used by JPL during the system level electromagnetic compatibility test for the Europa Clipper spacecraft later this year.

The Europa Clipper spacecraft will perform dozens of close flybys of Jupiter’s moon Europa, gathering detailed measurements from multiple instruments, including the radar instrument, to investigate whether the moon could have conditions suitable for life. Europa Clipper’s primary objective is to determine whether there are places below Europa’s surface that could support life.

Read the full story Posted: Aug 23,2023

Zentek announces R&D contract to test ZenARMOR nano-pigments in corrosion protection aerospace paint systems

Zentek recently announced a new research and development contract through Innovative Solutions Canada to test ZenARMOR™ nano-pigment in military grade, chromate-free, corrosion protection aerospace paint systems.

The testing will be conducted under the supervision of Dr. Qi Yang, and Dr. Naiheng Song, Research Officers at the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) Aerospace Research Centre’s Aerospace Manufacturing Technologies Centre (AMTC).

Read the full story Posted: Jun 27,2023

Zentek updates on graphene-based icephobic technology for drones

Following its September 2022 announcement on testing of icephobic coating technology, Zentek has now reported successful drone testing, where thrust was maintained under calibrated icing conditions of freezing drizzle and freezing rain in an outdoor, real-world environment. The drone with Zentek's icephobic coating applied to the propeller blades hovered under the outdoor icing rig and, on all tests conducted, maintained flight until the end of the battery life of the drone. The same drone with uncoated propeller blades rapidly lost the ability to maintain flight, according to the Company.

Zentek shared that the coating is a functionalized graphene oxide augmented elastomer.

Read the full story Posted: May 06,2023

Various graphene technologies to be tested during moon and space missions

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.

Read the full story Posted: Nov 30,2022

AMD signs contract with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Advanced Material Development (AMD) has announced that it has signed a contract for collaborative work with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) for AMD’s proprietary thin-film graphene-based coatings technology - a Radio Frequency absorbing nanomaterial that can be applied to a variety of substrates. JPL is a research and development laboratory federally funded by NASA and managed by the California Institute of Technology.

Image from AMD website, Courtesy of NASA/JPL-CalTech

The collaborative work is planned to be used for the NASA Europa Clipper spacecraft electromagnetic compatibility test campaign. AMD’s materials could help enable the Europa Clipper project to confirm that the spacecraft’s sensitive ice-penetrating radar will operate properly at key frequencies so as to meet science objectives.

Read the full story Posted: Nov 17,2022

Sparc Technologies, Composite Materials Engineering and Swinburne University collaborate on graphene-enhanced smart materials

a collaboration between Sparc Technologies, Swinburne University and Composite Materials Engineering focuses on smart composite structures to help engineers detect structural defects in planes and rockets before they cause disaster. The industry-linked project will create graphene-enabled smart composites for aviation, aerospace and renewable energy.

The project was funded by an Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage Grant from the Federal Government, with over AUD$1 million (around USD $640,000) invested across Swinburne University, the government and industry partners.

Read the full story Posted: Oct 02,2022

Graphene aerospace balloons to promote Malaysia's rubber industry

The Malaysian Rubber Council (MRC) has high hopes for its new aerospace balloon, made of a combination of graphene extract and natural rubber. The MRC's CEO, Nor Hizwan Ahmad, said the research and collaboration carried out by Meditech Gloves Sdn Bhd and Cranfield University in the United Kingdom has shown huge potential through the application of this product and findings.

The MRC CEO said the evolution from plantation to the aerospace industry is a great achievement for Malaysia’s rubber industry. He also said the aerospace balloon made of graphene extract and infused into natural rubber is new in the market and patented by Levidian Nanosystems.

Read the full story Posted: Aug 07,2022