increase the strength of tyres and industrial
rubber products up to seven times more
than carbon black, while providing increased
conductivity, impermeability and flame resistance.
Revolutionary types of graphene-enhanced rubber
products will serve to increase the country’s global
competitiveness.
Lithium-ion Batteries for Electric Vehicles
DISCOVERY OF GRAPHENE
Discovered in the UK in 2003 at the University
of Manchester by Andre Geim and Konstantin
Novoselov, graphene is a crystalline form of
carbon in which a single layer of carbon atoms
are arranged in a regular hexagonal pattern.
The discovery earned them a Nobel prize in
2010.
Malaysia’s National Automotive Policy (NAP) places
emphasis on the assembly of electric vehicles
and energy efficient vehicles (EEV), creating the
need for lithium-ion battery manufacturers to
produce on a larger scale. Lithium-ion batteries
are a crucial component for hybrid and electric
vehicles as they enhance battery performance
and lower production costs, creating a competitive
advantage. Graphene can unlock greater market
opportunity for hybrid and electric vehicle
manufacturers.
Picture from http://www.ox.ac.uk
Conductive Inks for Radio Frequency
Identification (RFID) and Photovoltaic
Cells
Graphene-enabled conductive inks have the
potential to catalyse the growth of several new
industries in Malaysia, namely in radio frequency
identification (RFID) and photovoltaic (PV) cells.
Conductive inks can replace printed wiring, which
can be especially beneficial for small circuitry that
needs low cost production methods. In RFID,
graphene conductive inks can be used to produce
much cheaper tags by inkjet printing the RFID
antennae. Today, due to the high costs, Malaysian
RFID system integrators choose to import chips
manufactured in Taiwan and China and only carry
out the assembly locally.
Graphene will be valuable to local solar cell
producers as it enables lower manufacturing costs
since graphene conductive inks can replace the
silver-based mesh currently covering individual
cells. By leveraging on this opportunity, Malaysian
domestic PV cell producers and assemblers
can get ahead of the innovation curve and spur
domestic production.
Innovative Lubricants
Innovation in lubricants holds a lot of potential
for petrochemical companies producing base
oils, palm oil plantation owners seeking outputs
for their biomass, and automotive manufacturers
seeking to reduce manufacturing costs and to
promote “green” products.
Graphene presents a unique opportunity for
innovation in this sector because its tribological
properties (relating to friction, lubrication, and
wear of interacting surfaces) are superior to other
commonly-used additives. Researchers have
found graphene to be useful in both wet and dry
applications. In wet application, the immediate
advantage is in producing a less toxic wet lubricant
since the base fluid can be water-based.
Platinum NanoChem
According to press reports, one Malaysian firm
has made innovation headway as a graphene
application developer in nanofluids. Platinum
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