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At the time of writing the Paralympic games are still in progress in Tokyo. The able-bodied Olympic games in Tokyo has ended and details of the technology behind some of the medal winning performances has leaked out. Graphene has been playing a role in these games.
The gold medal for archery was won by Korea with their athlete using graphene from Standard Graphene to enhance the polymer composite bow. The Women’s cycling produced two gold medals for the Netherlands with the winner using Directa Plus graphene ink in the clothing to maintain optimum heating. Haydale worked with the British team to create a similar wearable technology with its graphene inks for British medal winners. The technology is secret at the moment but we can expect a trickle-down effect to spread graphene further out into the sports market.
We have three special features this month.
Our Women in Graphene series continues. Debbie an interviewed Akanksha Urade, from India. We noticed Akanksha’s work on our social media feeds, she has a gift for explaining complex subjects in a clear and concise way that shows she really understands the science. This matches our ABC approach (p.6) and we respect her talents, well worth a read.
Debbie also interviewed Dr. Chris Griggs of the US Army ERDC. They have been excited about the potential for graphene for some time now and are actively exploring several avenues of development. They are working with Universal Matter who are developing the flash graphene process from Prof James Tour’s lab at Rice University. They also have a strong interest in the removal of toxins from wastewater and they have an increasing interest in graphene and infrastructure applications, particularly with concrete and asphalt.
I interviewed the leadership team behind the world’s first application of unreinforced graphene enhanced concrete. The GEIC and Nationwide Engineering have made a quantum leap in the application of this technology that they call Concretene. Concrete can not only be made stronger, so less is used, but graphene also helps the concrete achieve its final strength much faster than anyone expected. We suspect there are more benefits waiting to be discovered from these trials.
There is so much more happening in the world of graphene and 2D materials this month. I have run out of space to summarise here so I’ll encourage you to dive into this packed issue and explore further.
Adrian Nixon,
1st September 2021
