Graphene being unbelievably lean (only one atom thick), with the ability to detect light better than any sensor is known to be stronger than steel yet extremely flexible and a better conductor of current compared to copper, has to be one of the wondrous materials of this century.
Graphene has an immaculate shape with a striking honeycomb pattern with no inexpensive method of making cheap flawless replica of it. Although as it seems, perfection is not all it is meant to be and being imperfect worked out in favor of science.
Researchers from Northwestern University said that one of the main issues in fuel technology was the separating protons from hydrogen and they found that by means of just one layer of graphene and water, minor imperfections in the graphene facilitates only the proton to move from one side to the other. The velocity and acuteness of the imperfect grapheme membrane presents a much more simple and competent mechanism for fuel cell designs.
Franz M. Geiger, a chemist by profession who was the leader of the study stated that, “Imagine an electric car that charges in the same time it takes to fill a car with gas and better yet — imagine an electric car that uses hydrogen as fuel, not fossil fuels or ethanol, and not electricity from the power grid, to charge a battery. Our surprising discovery provides an electrochemical mechanism that could make these things possible one day.”
The research team believes that just a single layer graphene could very well create the planet’s leanest photon channel.
“We found if you just dial the graphene back a little on perfection, you will get the membrane you want. Everyone always strives to make really pristine graphene, but our data show if you want to get protons through, you need less perfect graphene,” said Geiger, a professor of chemistry in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences.
The US had the record of selling 118,500 electric cars out of the 16.5 million cars sold in 2014. There are a number of things which undermines the sales of electric vehicles such as low level of production, high manufacturing costs, and shortages of charging points in some regions. With all issues being faced, researchers are now focusing on making batteries which will last much longer.
Home batteries use almost the same technology as electric cars. Batteries which were made by Nikola Tesla can power an average household for almost about a week and are expected to be out in the market later in 2015.
Issues are still being faced with bulk production of graphene, but it seems that any grade of graphene will have a useful application someplace.
