Graphene production

HydroGraph Clean Power, a manufacturer of graphene, has announced it is expanding its application development capabilities to meet growing global demand by establishing a partnership with the University of Manchester’s Graphene Engineering Innovation Center (GEIC) commencing in October of 2023. 

This strategic collaboration will aim to significantly enhance and ‘de-risk’ HydroGraph's application development capabilities. The GEIC, formed to commercialize graphene-related technologies and products, specializes in rapidly scaling up applications involving composites, building materials, membranes, inks, and coatings. To support their mission the £60 million GEIC facility was established with significant lab and engineering space that houses state-of-the-art testing and application development equipment, supported by experienced and knowledgeable team. Hydrograph will scale up this critical application development work by leveraging the resources at the GEIC with a team of commercially focused scientists and engineers to support industry adoption of its "99.8% pristine fractal graphene".

Rice University researchers have found a way to harvest hydrogen and graphene from plastic waste using a low-emissions method that could more than pay for itself.

“In this work, we converted waste plastics ⎯ including mixed waste plastics that don’t have to be sorted by type or washed ⎯ into high-yield hydrogen gas and high-value graphene,” said Kevin Wyss, a Rice doctoral alumnus and lead author of the recent study. “If the produced graphene is sold at only 5% of current market value ⎯ a 95% off sale! ⎯ clean hydrogen could be produced for free.”

Earlier this year, Universal Matter acquired Applied Graphene Materials' assets for $1.3 million and then AGM changed its company name to Universal Matter GBR. Now, Universal Matter received support from The National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) Carbon Ore Processing Program through a cooperative agreement. 

The company has demonstrated a novel graphene production technology called Flash Joule Heating (FJH), which can transform carbonaceous material feedstocks, including coal and coal-wastes, to high quality graphene.

Researchers at  Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and Arizona State University have developed a technique that combines two approaches to nanofabrication - top-down and bottom-up methods - to enable atomic-scale precision manufacturing using a focused electron beam.

Top-down methods, such as lithography, employ external influences to modify materials. While they offer precision patterning, their resolution is often constrained by factors like beam size and scattering effects. On the other hand, bottom-up methods capitalize on the spontaneous self-assembly of atoms and molecules through chemical reactions, granting atomic-level control. However, the positioning in this method tends to be random rather than directed.
The novel technique demonstrated on twisted bilayer graphene (TBG) harmoniously integrates these two approaches.

Levidian and United Utilities will be working together to turn sewage biogas produced in Manchester into a sustainable feed source for graphene and hydrogen production.

The Government-funded collaboration is a first for the UK water industry and will see Levidian’s LOOP technology used to decarbonize biogas created within the wastewater treatment process. As well as producing hydrogen, the technology will also produce graphene.

LayerOne has announced the opening of Norway’s largest production unit for advanced graphene materials at Herøya. The company is scaling up production to meet the increasing demand from industries worldwide seeking to improve the performance and sustainability of their products. LayerOne is backed by Aker ASA.

LayerOne plans to expand the production with several larger units in different locations in the future. The aim is to become a globally leading supplier of advanced graphene materials. 

HydroGraph Clean Power has announced that its patented Hyperion System, designed for scaled-up production of high-purity graphene, achieved a key technology milestone to produce commercial scale quantities graphene. 

The Hyperion System will produce fractal graphene to serve various markets including lubricants, energy storage, resins, specialty chemicals, coatings and other markets. The validation process reportedly confirmed the capex cost per metric ton of graphene produced will be one of the lowest in the industry. The system can produce over 10 metric tons per year using readily available commodity acetylene and oxygen.

Gerdau Graphene, a nanotechnology company focused on the production, development, and commercialization of graphene-enhanced materials for industrial applications, has announced that it has landed the first sales of its graphene-enhanced Poly-G PE-07GM polyethylene masterbatch. The additive is suitable for the production of films, profiles, and sheets formed through the extrusion processes. 

The new thermoplastic products created using Poly-G PE-07GM are said to be stronger and offer greater overall performance while costing less to manufacture and producing significantly less waste across the value chain. Poly-G PE-07GM was piloted in a series of industrial applications within Gerdau’s factories before
commercialization, including as a film for construction nail packaging. Gerdau found that by using the new, 25% thinner graphene-enhanced plastic film, far fewer nails perforated the packaging. As a result, Gerdau reported a 39% reduction in the volume of discarded damaged packaging and a 7% increase in
film productivity.

Professor Lars Borchardt’s team at Ruhr University Bochum, Germany, has succeeded in carrying out light-driven chemical reactions in the solid-state without resorting heavily to solvents. The team stated that this provides a sustainable alternative to established synthesis methods.

Light is considered the ideal driving force of chemical reactions as it’s cheap, available in abundance and produces no waste. This is why light-driven, i.e. photochemical reactions are highly attractive for the production of chemical compounds. However, they are usually carried out in huge amounts of solvents that are often toxic and generate hazardous waste in enormous quantities. Solid-state photochemical reactions without solvents could present an alternative. However, they have hardly been feasible so far, as they could only be mixed insufficiently and so it was possible to scale them up to relevant quantities.

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

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.