2021 Annual Report out now!
The Graphene Hub Team achieved many successes this year with 9 PhD completions, +45 papers published, 2 new patents, and substantial growth and development for our industry partners. These achievements and more are captured in our 2021 Annual Report.
Graphene industry growth
First Graphene launched a new range of graphene-enhanced masterbatches and facilitated the incorporation of graphene into several commercially-available products including robust and durable safety boots and swimming pools. Their new Market Maker strategy and key collaborations are also likely to expedite the availability of more graphene-enhanced products on the market.
Archer Materials has further developed their nanofabrication capabilities to produce graphene-enhanced lab-on-a-chip devices. The chips use highly sensitive miniaturised graphene sensors to detect and identify the presence of pathogens for point of care medical diagnostics. Archer’s team have successfully created the nanosized biochip components on silicon wafers, an exceptional leap forward to commercialising the technology.
NematiQ have grown their range of graphene-enhanced water filtration membranes ready for market launch later in 2022. The membranes are undergoing the final round of rigorous testing at pilot scale to be ready for the commercial market. Graphene-enhanced membranes are a more efficient and sustainable alternative to current technologies, offering lower-cost operation and less waste production.
Sparc Technologies have further advanced their PFAS remediation technology over the past year with the development of the first large-scale batch of graphene-enhanced adsorbent technology used in pilot-scale trials. Results of these trials have enabled further development and optimisation of the technology.
Cleanfuture Energy have further developed their sustainable supercapacitor materials with a large-scale production method to convert sugarcane waste into graphene-like materials. The materials can then be incorporated into supercapacitors for improved function and efficiency. This is a key step in enabling the technology to be commercialised.
Research highlights
The Hub team continues to advance the fundamental knowledge of graphene and overcome many challenges to enable the growth of the world-wide graphene industry. A key outcome this year has been the coordinated effort in developing international standard methods for characterising graphene. The new ISO method enables labs around the world to assess the structure and properties of graphene samples in a consistent way for reproducible results.
Detecting fake graphene using a simple and readily accessible method is another important outcome for the graphene industry. Preventing counterfeit materials and ensuring consistency in graphene production improves the manufacturing industry’s confidence in this advanced material and facilitates uptake and incorporation into more products.
Other highlights include the development of highly effective sensors, batteries, supercapacitors, fuel cells, antennas, thermoelectric devices, and printable electronics.
A team effort
The Hub team have put in an extraordinary effort this year with most industry projects and PhD products finishing up. We now look forward to finalising the Hub activities and outcomes as we enter the final few months of this exceptionally successful program. Thanks to all our team members, partners and collaborators for their fantastic support!
Check out more highlights here: 2021_ARC Graphene Hub Annual report_Final
