Graphene, a material that will change our world
- It brings together a series of properties that had not been found before in any other material
- Transparent and flexible, roll-up and folding computer screens, which become telephones and diversify into various, will be a reality
- Aeronautics, medicine, telecommunications, energy production ... graphene will be present in all areas of our life, improving it,.
The scientific community and industry around the world are fascinated by a new material that, due to its extraordinary properties and its many practical applications, will undoubtedly change many aspects of our lives: graphene.
What makes graphene so extraordinary?
It is a transparent material, extremely thin (the thinnest possible), very light (0.77 milligrams per square meter) waterproof, elastic, flexible and, at the same time, amazingly resistant. Graphene is the best known conductor of electricity and is also found in abundance in nature, making it inexpensive.
The scientific community and industry around the world are fascinated by a new material that, due to its extraordinary properties and its many practical applications, will undoubtedly change many aspects of our lives: graphene.
What makes graphene so extraordinary?
It is a transparent material, extremely thin (the thinnest possible), very light (0.77 milligrams per square meter) waterproof, elastic, flexible and, at the same time, amazingly resistant. Graphene is the best known conductor of electricity and is also found in abundance in nature, making it inexpensive.
In addition, recently, researchers from the University of Manchester have found that it has the ability to "self-repair." That is, if the structure of a sheet of this material breaks, the graphene attracts the carbon atoms it needs from around it and repairs the gaps, covering them properly.
Chemical composition
Graphene is a single layer of carbon atoms (it is only one atom thick) arranged in a hexagonal lattice. It is obtained from natural graphite that is extracted from coal mines and with which, for example, pencils or car brakes are made; although it can also be synthesized.
Graphene was discovered in 2004 by Russian-born scientists Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov, but it was in 2010, the year in which these researchers received the Nobel Prize in Physics, that the “graphene fever” began.
Applications
The amazing versatility of graphene allows for multiple commercial applications. In fact, these are practically limitless. The list keeps growing. Let's see some:
- Hard drives capable of storing 1,000 times more information.
- The semiconductors on which the ultra-fast computers of the future are based (replacing silicon).
- Flexible screens (roll-up and folding that will serve as the basis for various devices) and extremely thin that can integrate systems such as the contactless payment.
- Night vision cameras for taking photos and filming videos without light.
- Longer lasting batteries for mobile phones, computers and electric cars (graphene electrodes make batteries ten times more durable than the ones we now use to charge our mobile phones).
- New ultra-fast telecommunications networks.
- Ultracapacitors (for electric cars and trains, and to improve the performance of electric distribution lines).
- Aeronautical applications: airplanes that will fly much faster and emitting less harmful gases into the atmosphere.
- Powerful solar panels, 42% efficient (currently, cells only convert 16% of the energy they receive into electricity).
- OLED (Organic LED) TVs that will be manufactured with organic materials and more sustainable with the environment.
- Energy efficient membranes to produce natural gas and in turn reduce carbon dioxide emissions from thermal stacks and vehicle exhaust pipes.
- Cheaper of the gas separation process in the production of plastics and fuels.
- Medical applications, such as the design of new cancer vaccines and sensors that are tattooed on the teeth to detect pathologies.
Energy efficient membranes to produce natural gas and in turn reduce carbon dioxide emissions from thermal stacks and vehicle exhaust pipes.
Cheaper of the gas separation process in the production of plastics and fuels.
Medical applications, such as the design of new cancer vaccines and sensors that are tattooed on the teeth to detect pathologies.
Graphene in Spain and the Flagship project of the European Union
Spain has high-level researchers who are working on the study of graphene. The Spanish node of the European Union Flagship project is currently one of the most active. The San Sebastian company Graphenea, the largest graphene producer in the EU, is one of the project partners together with companies such as Philips, Varta, Nokia, ST Microelectronics, Repsol, Alcatel-Lucent or Airbus. Likewise, the construction of one of the largest graphene production plants in the world is shortly planned in the municipality of Yecla (Murcia, Spain).
Disadvantages being worked on
The processes for obtaining graphene from graphite still present a certain complexity, as well as the achievement of the required purity in each case depending on the application for which the material is to be used. However, solving these problems is just a matter of time: advances are constant and publications such as Science or Nature continually echo them.
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