What is Graphene

Graphene is a single layer (monolayer) of carbon atoms, firmly bonded in a hexagonal honeycomb lattice. It is an allotrope of carbon with a molecular bond length of 0.142 nanometers and takes the shape of a plane of sp2-bonded atoms. Layers of graphene piled on top of each other create graphite, with an interplanar spacing of 0.335 nanometres. Van der Waals forces, which can be overcome during exfoliation of graphene from graphite, hold the various layers of graphene in graphite together. Given this context, it may come as a surprise to learn that, after hydrogen, helium, and oxygen, carbon is the second most abundant mass in the human body and the fourth most plentiful element in the universe (by mass). Due to this, carbon is the chemical

Graphene Production Challenges

Until recently, the only way to produce large areas of graphene was through a time-consuming, expensive process called chemical vapour deposition (CVD), which involved the use of hazardous chemicals to grow graphene as a monolayer by heating platinum, nickel, or titanium carbide in the presence of ethylene or benzene. There was no other substrate that could be used for crystalline epitaxy but metal. Initially, graphene was not available for commercial usage or developing research due to these production problems. The difficulties of removing the graphene layers from the metallic substrate without harming the graphene also made it difficult to use CVD graphene in electronics.

Applications

Coordinated initiatives, such as the billion-euro EU project Graphene Flagship, are necessary to move graphene research into commercial applications. A improved graphene applications roadmap was created by Flagship researchers following the initial phase, which lasted several years. It identifies the most potential application areas, including composites, energy, telecommunications, electronics, sensors and imaging, and biomedical technologies.