(July 23, 2015) Ben-Gurion
University of the Negev (BGU) and University of Western Australia researchers
have developed a new process to develop few-layer graphene for use in energy
storage and other material applications that is faster, potentially scalable
and surmounts some of the current graphene production limitations.
Graphene is a thin atomic layer of graphite (used in
pencils) with numerous properties that could be valuable in a variety of
applications, including medicine, electronics and energy. Discovered only 11
years ago, graphene is one of the strongest materials in the world, highly conductive,
flexible, and transparent. However, current methods for production currently
require toxic chemicals and lengthy and cumbersome processes that result in low
yield that is not scalable for commercial applications.
The new revolutionary one-step, high-yield generation
process is detailed in the latest issue of Carbon, published by a collaborative
team that includes BGU Prof. Jeffrey Gordon of the Alexandre Yersin Department
of Solar Energy and Environmental Physics at the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for
Desert Research and Prof. H.T. Chua’s group at the University of Western
Australia (UWA, Perth).