Silverson Laboratory Mixers Are At The Forefront Of Graphene Research
A leading university recently placed an order for (13) Silverson Laboratory mixers for their new graphene center. The new facility will help accelerate graphene commercialization. Graphene is a two-dimensional material consisting of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb structure one million times thinner than a sheet of paper. It is the strongest known material – 200 times stronger than steel, it is highly conductive of both heat and electricity, and yet lightweight and flexible, making it a desirable material for use in many industries including aerospace, engineering, digital electronics, bio-medicines, transport and energy.
Graphene was first isolated from graphite in 2004 using a sticky tape method – removing flakes from a piece of graphite using a piece of sticky tape. By repeatedly separating the graphite fragments, flakes just one atom thick were created. Although this method is still used in laboratories it cannot be replicated on a larger scale, and research into ways of isolating graphene in sufficient amounts to be commercially viable has been ongoing for some years. A process called exfoliation, which is the high shear mixing of graphite in a suitable solvent, has been proven to isolate small but significant amounts of graphene.
Silverson mixers have the high shear necessary to reduce the graphite down to usable defect-free graphene, and the equipment has been used by many of the leading researchers due to the ease of scale up from the laboratory mixers to larger production models. Subsequently Silverson have already sold mixers to research establishments all over the world for this application. The Model L5M-A Sealed Unit, L5M-A standard unit, and the Model AX5, each with a full range of work-heads, is useful equipment for this research work.
For more information, fill out the form below!
