Posted: Feb 15, 2017 |
Graphene from soybeans
(Nanowerk News) A breakthrough by CSIRO-led scientists has made the world's strongest material more commercially viable, thanks to the humble soybean.
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Graphene is a carbon material that is one atom thick.
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Its thin composition and high conductivity means it is used in applications ranging from miniaturised electronics to biomedical devices.
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These properties also enable thinner wire connections; providing extensive benefits for computers, solar panels, batteries, sensors and other devices.
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Until now, the high cost of graphene production has been the major roadblock in its commercialisation.
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Previously, graphene was grown in a highly-controlled environment with explosive compressed gases, requiring long hours of operation at high temperatures and extensive vacuum processing.
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CSIRO scientists have developed a novel "GraphAir" technology which eliminates the need for such a highly-controlled environment.
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The technology grows graphene film in ambient air with a natural precursor, making its production faster and simpler.
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"This ambient-air process for graphene fabrication is fast, simple, safe, potentially scalable, and integration-friendly," CSIRO scientist Dr Zhao Jun Han, co-author of the paper published today in Nature Communications ("Single-step ambient-air synthesis of graphene from renewable precursors as electrochemical genosensor") said.
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"Our unique technology is expected to reduce the cost of graphene production and improve the uptake in new applications."
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GraphAir transforms soybean oil - a renewable, natural material - into graphene films in a single step.
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"Our GraphAir technology results in good and transformable graphene properties, comparable to graphene made by conventional methods," CSIRO scientist and co-author of the study Dr Dong Han Seo said.
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With heat, soybean oil breaks down into a range of carbon building units that are essential for the synthesis of graphene.
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The team also transformed other types of renewable and even waste oil, such as those leftover from barbecues or cooking, into graphene films.
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"We can now recycle waste oils that would have otherwise been discarded and transform them into something useful," Dr Seo said.
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The potential applications of graphene include water filtration and purification, renewable energy, sensors, personalised healthcare and medicine, to name a few.
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Graphene has excellent electronic, mechanical, thermal and optical properties as well.
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Its uses range from improving battery performance in energy devices, to cheaper solar panels.
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CSIRO are looking to partner with industry to find new uses for graphene.
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