A yarn of graphene

Roberto Saracco July 8, 2014 Blog 149 Views

Researches at Penn State University have found a way to create a yarn made of graphene fibres, making it as strong as one made of Kevlar.
The yarn is made by graphene oxide and it is possible to remove the oxide thus creating a very good conductor of electricity. By drugging it with silver nano rods one can get the same conductivity of a copper cable, but at much reduced weight (copper weights over 8 times more than carbon). This means reduced cost for power lines.
The yarn is created through a process where a thin film of graphene oxide (produced through chemical exfoliation of graphite into graphene flakes that is mixed with water and then centrifuged creating a slurry) is cut into narrow strips and wound with an automatic finer scroller. The resulting thread can be knotted and stretched without fracturing, like a normal yarn.
Since the main component is graphite that is cheaply available the end result can be had a very low cost. This opens the door to a variety of applications where having a light and strong material is interesting.

About Roberto Saracco

Roberto Saracco fell in love with technology and its implications long time ago. His background is in math and computer science. Until April 2017 he led the EIT Digital Italian Node and then was head of the Industrial Doctoral School of EIT Digital up to September 2018. Previously, up to December 2011 he was the Director of the Telecom Italia Future Centre in Venice, looking at the interplay of technology evolution, economics and society. At the turn of the century he led a World Bank-Infodev project to stimulate entrepreneurship in Latin America. He is a senior member of IEEE where he leads the New Initiative Committee and co-chairs the Digital Reality Initiative. He is a member of the IEEE in 2050 Ad Hoc Committee. He teaches a Master course on Technology Forecasting and Market impact at the University of Trento. He has published over 100 papers in journals and magazines and 14 books.

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