On February 20, 2014, Xiamen University (XMU) was visited by a world-class scientist to share his latest research findings on graphene, a highly versatile two-dimensional new material, research on which has earned him a Nobel Prize in 2010. Distinguished Nobel prize laureate in Physics, Prof. Konstantin Novoselov, a Russo-British physicist aged 38, paid his first visit to XMU, jointly organized by XMU, Bluestone Global Tech and Powerbooster Technologies, both companies engaging in the research and development of products using graphene. Prof. Novoselov, as a keynote speaker, presented an excellent talk with topic of “Applications & Technology of Graphene – Material without Limit” at the Symposium of Graphene Applications and Technology, held in the Science & Arts Hall of Xiamen University. This is the Nanqiang Lecture, the highest level lecture at XMU, and the 6th iChEM lecture with multi-video system shared by such four universities and institution as XMU, FDU, USTC and DICP at four different locations. Over 900 XMU faculties and students attended the symposium.
Professor Zhong-Qun Tian, the Director of Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemistry for Energy Materials (iChEM), presided over the symposium. His vivid introduction of Prof. Novoselov with showing many of interesting photos enlivened the atmosphere. XMU President Chong-Shi Zhu awarded Prof. Novoselov a commemorative plaque named as Nanqiang Lecture, the highest level lecture at XMU.
Prof. Novoselov presented his latest research findings on graphene, the prospects and potential applications of the material in plasmonics, 2D materials/capacitor, semiconductor/THz/, composites and barrier coatings and membranes, as well as its impact on our daily life in his talk. He confidently envisioned the enormous economic and social value of the magic single atomic layer material - graphene. He anticipated that it will only take 5 seconds for the cell phone batteries to be charged if the graphene could be used in lithium batteries; similarly, foldable touch panel will be no longer a fantasy in the future due to excellent flexibility of the graphene.
Prof. Yun-Bao Jiang, the Dean of College of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, introduced Dr. Zhongping Lai, the CEO of Bluestone Global Tech, to the audience. Dr. Lai presented their excellent work on the latest technology and application of the graphene in Li-ion battery anode material –silicon-based anode material additives with topic of “Large Area CVD Graphene Production and Graphene Application in Energy Storage”. On behalf of the two collaborators of Bluestone Global Tech and Powerbooster Technologies, this is the first time to release the new technology in graphene application and the breakthrough in the field of Li-ion batteries. In addition, the silicon-based anode material additives can greatly improve battery capacity and stability as the industries expected and concerned. Prof. Novolesov and Prof. Lai interacted with the students and answered questions from the students at the end. Further cooperation with Prof. Novoselov, Bluestone Global Tech and Powerbooster Technologies in the graphene application will be discussed afterwards.
In the afternoon, Xiamen Mayor Keqing Liu, accompanied by the XMU President Chong-Shi Zhu met with Prof. Novoselov and had joyful discussion on joint establishment of a research institute for graphene study in Xiamen.
Background:
Graphene is a two dimensional material consisting of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb or chicken wire structure. It is the thinnest material known and yet is also one of the strongest. It conducts electricity as efficiently as copper and outperforms all other materials as a conductor of heat. Graphene is almost completely transparent, yet so dense that even the smallest atom helium cannot pass through it. Graphene has an extremely broad application due to its high economic and social value in the traditional field of electronic communications, Li-ion batteries, aerospace industry, biomedicine, environmental protection, solar energy, photovoltaic and other emerging fields and new energy, new materials that will eventually lead to advanced technology revolution.
Lithium-ion batteries
The graphene-additive lithium battery can extend the battery's capacity by 20 percent in the short-term, and is expected to increase to 50 percent in three to five years. The new technology can also significantly shorten the charging time of lithium batteries. For instance, the one-charge distance range of electric cars can be extended to more than 500 km using a graphene-additive lithium battery.
Flexible Wear Products
Graphene films are very soft and can be folded up, so wearable electronics products will be widely used, such as the production of bendable screen for phones, watches and so on. It is expected the related products will be available no later than 2014.
Biomedical Application
Graphene oxide can destroy the bacterial cell membrane to kill bacteria in the way of causing the outflow of intracellular substances; nanoscale graphene oxide with chemotherapy and radiation therapy can work together to fight cancer and adjuvant cancer therapy.
Next-Generation LED
Graphene was proven to show that LED lights will not have a self-heating issue because of graphene’s ability to spread heat and reduce thermal boundary resistance. As far as the advancement of LED light bulbs, once graphene is incorporated into manufacturing, LED light bulbs will only consume roughly 20% of the energy of a conventional incandescent bulb. In addition, these light bulbs are estimated to last around 25 years.
Since the graphene was discovered in 2004, it has quickly become a super material in which the governments, the research institutions and multinational corporations invested heavily. The research of graphene materials was assigned as one of the only two “Future Emerging Technologies Flagship Project” by the European Commission with the funding support of one billion Euros. The South Korean government actively supports national research institutions and enterprises for graphene research and commercialization of research techniques such as Samsung. The Japanese government started early on the funding support of graphene technology development projects in 2007. Fujitsu Global focused on the development of graphene transistors. The Singapore government is also actively promoting the graphene study in the universities. In 2012, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of China issued "New Materials 12th Five-year Plan” in which clearly stated development of graphene materials. It is conservatively estimated that the global industries for graphene development will be more than US$100 billion in the next 5 to 10 years. Professors Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov at the University of Manchester won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2010 "for groundbreaking experiments regarding the two-dimensional material graphene".
The National Graphene Institute (NGI) at The University of Manchester, organized by the British government and led by the two Nobel Laureate, is the world’s foremost centre for graphene research and commercialization, It uniquely offers a dedicated collaborative research environment where industry and science can work side by side on developing new and exciting graphene applications. Set to open in early 2015, the £61m NGI facility will complement the existing excellence in research in graphene and other 2D materials at The University of Manchester with an increased focus on commercialising research through directly working with industry partners.
About The University of Manchester
The University of Manchester, a member of the eminent Russell Group of UK leading universities, is one of the largest (c40,000 students) and most popular universities in the UK. It has 20 academic schools and hundreds of specialist research groups undertaking pioneering multi-disciplinary teaching and research of worldwide significance. According to the results of the most recent Research Assessment Exercise, The University of Manchester is one of the country’s major research institutions, rated 3rd in the UK in terms of ‘research power’. The University has an annual income of £807 million and is ranked 40th in the world and 5th in the UK for the quality of its teaching and impact of its research. It is widely regarded as one of the foremost universities in the UK for the commercialisation of its research having generated more than 100 spin out companies, with Third-Party investments and grants providing in excess of £190m in the last 7 years.
About Bluestone Global Tech
Bluestone Global Tech (BGT), established in 2011, is dedicated to the development of graphene technology with the ultimate goal of utilizing this “wonder material” to enhance our lives. BGT has pioneered the mass production of high-quality graphene enabling the commercialization of many graphene-enhanced applications such as advanced displays, flexible electronics, and energy storage materials.
About Powerbooster Technologies
Powerbooster Technologies is a leading graphene-science company aiming at applying graphene technology to enrich our everyday life experience. It specializes in marketing and enhancing graphene applications into various areas such as mobile device technology, energy generation and storage, medical and healthcare.
