Processing materials with a blender

Researchers claim to have found a way to make graphene metamaterials right in a normal kitchen using a blender and dishwashing liquid.

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Graphene is the thinnest material in the world today with only one layer of carbon atoms, transparent but harder than steel. This material has superconducting properties and is expected to change the way electronic devices are manufactured and become the future of electronics learning.

More and more researchers and manufacturers want to use graphene to replace semiconductors in computers, touch screens, conventional batteries and next-generation solar cells.

Scientists recently discovered that the method of turning graphite pieces into graphene is so simple that, in principle, it can be reconstructed at home with household appliances. The process of creating hundreds of liters of solutions containing metamaterials has just been published in Nature Materials.

Using just a high-performance mixer or blender, graphite powder, dishwashing liquid and water can produce graphene, according to new research.

Physics-chemistry professor Jonathan Coleman from Trinity College Dublin and his colleagues used common equipment, available on the market, such as high-power cutter and even a blender. Element for testing. First, they poured a bit of graphite powder into the blender, added water, then the dishwashing liquid and turned on the high-speed mixer.

They discovered that the shear force due to the fast rotating tool in the solution can achieve intense enough to separate the layers of graphene made of graphite pieces, without damaging their two-dimensional structure.

"We have developed a new way to make graphene sheets. This method brings a lot of defectless graphene. In the lab, we only produce a few grams of graphene, but when scaling up, they We can produce tons of metamaterials, " Coleman stressed.

The team tested the performance of the graphene sheets created in the above way by using them as fillers to reinforce plastic materials or as a conduction element for batteries and removable panels. They say that creating such a large amount of good and cheap metamaterials will enhance graphene applications in the production of different types of devices.

Coleman disclosed that a research funding company has now applied for a patent for a new way to create graphene.