New research suggests that the life of lithium-ion batteries could be more than doubled by using graphene girders at the electrodes.
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Researchers from the Chinese Harbin Institute of Technology have developed an intriguing material that combines a soft, self-healing polymer with a tough layer of graphene oxide and could one day form the basis of ultra-tough scratch resistant coatings.
Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology and the Beijing University of Technology have exploited graphene’s thermoelectric properties to create a new kind of radiation detector. Classified as a bolometer, the new device has a fast response time and, unlike most other bolometers, works over a wide range of temperatures. With a simple design and relatively low cost, this device could be scaled up, enabling a wide range of commercial applications.
Researchers from Clemson’s Nanomaterials Institute (CNI) have made progress towards their goal to produce wireless power using triboelectricity – a green energy source invented by the CNI In March 2017. The simple triboelectric nanogenerator, or U-TENG, is a small device made simply of plastic and tape that generates electricity from motion and vibrations. When the two materials are brought together – through clapping your hands or tapping your feet, for example – a voltage is generated that is detected by a wired, external circuit. Electrical energy, by way of the circuit, is then stored in a capacitor or a battery until it’s needed.
One of the key requirements of future optical communications technologies is a nanoscale light source capable of emitting ultrafast light pulses. In a new study, researchers have shown that graphene may be an ideal candidate for such a light source, by demonstrating graphene-based devices that emit light pulses with a bandwidth of up to 10 GHz and pulse durations of less than 100 picoseconds (or 10 billion pulses per second).
The interest in graphene and its translation into commercial products has been expanding at a high pace. Based on previously described pulmonary safety concerns for carbon nanomaterials, there is a great need to define parameters guiding interactions between graphene-based materials and the pulmonary system.
Imperial College London researchers aim to reduce the weight of body armor by combining silk with graphene. The team hypothesized that by improving on the Kevlar layer, they could reduce the size of the ceramic outer layer, making the vest much more wearable.
They initially looked at spider silk (as it is known to be 10 times tougher than Kevlar) but soon reached the conclusion that it would be too expensive and difficult. Instead, they turned to silk from silkworms, produced for thousands of years through sericulture. But while it is much easier to produce, it is not as tough as spider silk. To improve this, they added graphene.
Self-healing smart coatings could someday make scratches on cell phones a thing of the past. But researchers often have to compromise between strength and the ability to self-repair when developing these materials.
In the run-up to a national conference focusing on how new materials can help drive the e-car revolution entitled Automotive Advanced Materials: 2D or not 2D? Richard Fields, a Research Associate at the National Graphene Institute, a world-leading facility that supports Royce’s 2D materials research, discusses the challenges for the future of electric transportation and energy storage – and how graphene has the potential to provide a solution.
In a progression of examinations directed a month ago, Cambridge analysts experiencedweightlessness testing graphene’s application in space. Acting as a major aspect of a joint effort between the Graphene Flagship and the European Space Agency, scientists from the Cambridge Graphene Center tried graphene in microgravity conditions out of the blue while on board an illustrative flight – frequently alluded to as the ‘regurgitation comet’. The investigations they led were intended to test graphene’s potential in cooling frameworks for satellites.