INGENIEUR
INGENIEUR
Identified applications are at varying stages of R & D maturity and time to commercialization
Project timeline to commercialization
Rubber w / o regulation
LiB anodes / Ultracaps.
Protective coatings
Composites
Nanofluids |
Conductive inks |
Plastics Rubber w / regulation |
2020 + |
2014- 2015 |
|
2015- 2020 |
|
Commercially ready projects
Medium-term business opportunities
Long-term business opportunities
Identified graphene applications and timeline to commercialisation
National Graphene Action Plan 2020
Methane gas, a by-product in palm oil production is the feedstock from which graphene is derived. As the one of the world’ s largest producers of crude palm oil, the Malaysian Government wants to tap into the vast potential presented by graphene. The country’ s emphasis is on the downstream segment, as defined in the National Graphene Action Plan( NGAP) 2020 unveiled by Pemandu, Agensi Inovasi Malaysia( AIM) and NanoMalaysia in 2014. The plan outlines the country’ s focus on the downstream value chain with five priority areas – conductive links, rubber additives, nanofluids( drilling fluids and lubricants), lithium-ion batteries and plastic additives.
According to the NGAP 2020, graphene could generate substantial income for Malaysia through commercialisation of graphene-enhanced products. The projected GNI generated could reach RM20 billion by 2020. If executed correctly, the downstream players investing in graphene R & D and developing proprietary products will capture this opportunity.
Malaysia will place initial focus of its graphene action plan on large domestic industries and areas targeted by the Government for innovation and growth. This includes rubber products, lubricants, plastics, batteries for electric vehicles, conductive inks for radio frequency identification( RFID) and photovoltaic cells.
Enhanced Rubber Products
The global rubber industry represents a RM 900 billion market, in which Malaysia is a leading global player in several product categories notably rubber gloves, industrial rubber products, condoms and tyres. When incorporated as an additive to rubber, graphene offers superior properties such as increased strength, excellent conductivity( electric and thermal), and better impermeability.
For gloves and condoms, graphene’ s strength can be combined with the elasticity of latex to produce an enhanced material that is thinner, stronger and more impermeable. Graphene can
66 VOL 68 OCTOBER- DECEMBER 2016