An article features Rice research into developing a method to create laser-induced graphene with features more than 60% smaller than macro versions and almost 10 times smaller than typically achieved with an infrared laser. Co-authors James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering, and postdoctoral researcher Michael Stanford are quoted. A Rice video is included.

SciTech Daily

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An article features Rice research into developing a method to create laser-induced graphene with features more than 60% smaller than macro versions and almost 10 times smaller than typically achieved with an infrared laser. Co-author James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering, is quoted.

Laser Focus World (This article also appeared in Control Engineering and AZoNano.)

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An article features Rice research into developing a method to create laser-induced graphene with features more than 60% smaller than macro versions and almost 10 times smaller than typically achieved with an infrared laser. Co-authors James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering, and postdoctoral researcher Michael Stanford are quoted. A Rice video is included.

Phys.org (This article also appeared in The Engineer, Science Daily, AZo Nano and Graphene-Info.com.)

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You don’t need a big laser to make laser-induced graphene. Scientists at Rice, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory are using a very small visible beam to burn the foamy form of carbon into microscopic patterns.


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An article features pioneering research from Rice scientists that can create flash graphene from any carbon source. Co-authors James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering, is quoted. KTUL mentions that Tour will speak at the University of Tulsa Feb. 13.

Grist

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An article features pioneering graphene research by James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering. Lead author and graduate student Duy Luong is quoted.

IEEE Spectrum

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An article features pioneering research from Rice scientists that can create flash graphene from any carbon source. Co-authors James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering, and research administrator Ksenia Bets are cited in the World News.

Waste Advantage Magazine

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Un equipo de investigadores de la Universidad de Rice en Texas desarrolló un nuevo proceso ecológico que produce uno de los materiales más fuertes conocidos por la humanidad a partir de materiales como el carbón, los plásticos y el desperdicio de alimentos.

The World News (An English translation is not available. This article also appeared in 10 other media outlets.)


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À Houston, le professeur James Tour a mis le doigt sur une découverte à fort potentiel environnemental : la transformation de matériaux contenant du carbone en graphène.


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I ricercatori della Rice University hanno sviluppato un processo per trasformare praticamente qualsiasi fonte di carbonio in polvere di grafene.

Soprannominato flash graphene, i ricercatori hanno escogitato una tecnica rapida ed economica per convertire oggetti contenenti carbonio – come carbone, plastica e rifiuti alimentari, residui di legno, biochar, coke e petrolio, ad esempio – in prezioso grafene, un supermateriale per la sua forza dichiarata e la gamma di possibili applicazioni tra cui nei settori delle energie rinnovabili, della filtrazione dell’acqua e dell’elettronica per citarne solo alcuni.

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A magic wand has been developed! A touch, a bolt of electricity, and a bright flash of light turns trash into the greatest of space-age materials: graphene.

Yes, graphene, which presently sells for $67,000 to $200,000 per ton, can be made from trash which people will pay us to take off their hands.

Bulk graphene synthesis is limited by both the multiple steps complicating the formation process and the quality of the produced graphene. Here we develop a flash joule heating process to prepare high quality graphene from any carbon sources. The process is termed “flash graphene” and it has an exciting scaling potential. This could greatly affect the selling price of graphene, lowering it to a price-point so that it could become an additive in large-scale commodity materials such as even asphalt and concrete.

Currently bulk graphene synthesis is mainly from the top-down exfoliation of graphite either physically, chemically or electrochemically, affording AB-stacked (Bernal) graphene nanoplatelets that are tens of nm in thickness. With this flash graphene magic wand approach, we can solve both process and feedstock problems of graphene synthesis.

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Rice University researchers have discovered a way to convert coal, petroleum coke, plastic or any carbon-based waste into a substance that they say can slash emissions cheaply from some of the most energy-intensive industries, such as concrete and cement manufacturing.

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Graphene is insanely useful, but very difficult to produce — until now.

Recent technology developed at Rice University is taking the idea that one man's trash is another man's treasure to its extreme. Banana peels, coffee grounds, single-use plastic containers, coal — all of these and more are being turned into one of the most valuable materials around: graphene. Chemist James Tour and his team have developed a rapid process that can transform bulk-quantities of junk into flakes of graphene.

Think Big

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About the score	“In the top 5% of all research outputs scored by Altmetric. High Attention Score compared to outputs of the same age (99th percentile).”
Title	Gram-scale bottom-up flash graphene synthesis
Published in	Nature, January 2020
DOI	10.1038/s41586-020-1938-0
Altmetric Link	https://www.altmetric.com/details/74586330
Authors	Duy X. Luong, Ksenia V. Bets, Wala Ali Algozeeb, Michael G. Stanford, Carter Kittrell, Weiyin Chen, Rodrigo V. Salvatierra, Muqing Ren, Emily A. McHugh, Paul A. Advincula, Zhe Wang, Mahesh Bhatt, Hua Guo, Vladimir Mancevski, Rouzbeh Shahsavari, Boris I. Yakobson, James M. Tour

An article features pioneering graphene research by James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering. Co-author and research administrator Ksenia Bets is quoted. A Rice video is included.

Newsweek (This article also appeared in 10 other media outlets.)

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‘Green’ process promises pristine graphene in bulk using waste food, plastic and other materials

RICE NEWS RELEASE

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That banana peel, turned into graphene, can help facilitate a massive reduction of the environmental impact of concrete and other building materials. While you’re at it, toss in those plastic empties.

A new process introduced by the Rice University lab of chemist James Tour can turn bulk quantities of just about any carbon source into valuable graphene flakes. The process is quick and cheap; Tour said the “flash graphene” technique can convert a ton of coal, waste food or plastic into graphene for a fraction of the cost used by other bulk graphene-producing methods.

Carbon may be the building block of life, but it's also a building block inside a whole bunch of our trash, from the carbon black in tires to banana peels and plastic bags. But for the first time, scientists have found a way to give this underutilized carbon new life.

With a simple jolt of electricity, researchers at Rice University have turned garbage into graphene, a vital material in electronics, solar panels, and even asphalt. The new process, which is called "flash graphene" production, yields bulk quantities of graphene flakes. Not only does this technique produce far more graphene than traditional methods, but it's also way cheaper and greener, upcycling food waste, plastic, and even coal into a valuable carbon allotrope used in various branches of material science.

Popular Mechanics

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With atom-thin sheets of carbon atoms arranged like chicken wire, graphene is stronger than steel, conducts electricity and heat better than copper, and can serve as an impermeable barrier preventing metals from rusting. But since its 2004 discovery, high-quality graphene—either single sheets or just a few stacked layers—has remained expensive to make and purify on an industrial scale. That’s not a problem for making diminutive devices such as high-speed transistors and efficient light-emitting diodes. But current techniques, which make graphene by depositing it from a vapor, are too costly for many high-volume applications. And higher throughput approaches, such as peeling graphene from chunks of the mineral graphite, produce flecks composed of up to 50 graphene layers that are not ideal for most applications.

SicenceMag

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An article features Rice research that developed a technique to turn laser-induced graphene into self-sterilizing filters that grab pathogens out of the air and kill them with small pulses of electricity. Co-authors James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering, Lovett College senior John Li and postdoctoral researcher Michael Stanford are quoted.

Printed Electronics World (This article also appeared in 10 other media outlets.)

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An article features Rice research that developed a technique to turn laser-induced graphene into self-sterilizing filters that grab pathogens out of the air and kill them with small pulses of electricity. Co-authors James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering, Lovett College senior John Li and postdoctoral researcher Michael Stanford are quoted.

Futurity (This article also appeared in more than 20 other media outlets.)

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Rice scientists have transformed their laser-induced graphene into self-sterilizing filters that grab pathogens out of the air and kill them with small pulses of electricity. The flexible filter developed by the Rice lab of chemist James Tour may be of special interest to hospitals, where patients have a 1-in-31 chance of acquiring a potentially antibiotic-resistant infection during hospitalization.

Rice University

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An article features Rice research that has adapted laser-induced graphene into small, metal-free devices that generate electricity. Postdoctoral researcher Michael Stanford is quoted.

A small, flexible generator developed by scientists at Rice University can recharge a wearable medical device through a patient's everyday movements, according to a recent study published in ACS Nano.

The researchers created a metal-free device out of laser-induced graphene that, when attached to a patient's shoes or clothing, generates static electricity from a heel strike or an arm swinging against the torso. They noted that their findings could enable the future development of more "practical" medical wearables requiring continual charging.

Becker’s Hospital Review (This article also appeared in Edgy Labs, ExpressTech and Off Grid Energy Independence.)

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Forscher der Rice University haben einen triboelektrischen Generator entwickelt, der - zum Beispiel in Schuhen verbaut - mechanische Energie in elektrische umwandelt und so Geräte mit Strom versorgt. Eine Hauptrolle dabei spielt Graphen. Der Chemiker James Tour hat das Material mit Laser-Hilfe hergestellt und es "Laser Induced Graphene" (LIG) genannt. Kommt es in Berührung mit der Oberfläche anderer Materialien, fließen Elektronen, es entsteht nutzbarer Strom.

An article features the research of James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering, which has adapted laser-induced graphene into small, metal-free devices that generate electricity. The article quotes Tour and quotes and pictures postdoctoral researcher Michael Stanford. A Rice video is included.

The Engineer (This article also appeared in more than 10 other media)

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An article features Rice research that determined that polyethylene glycol and graphene quantum dots from common coal are just as effective at halting damage from superoxide and hydrogen peroxides as materials studied in 2013. James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering, is quoted and pictured.

Coal used for power generation presents some pretty damning statistics. It accounted for about 67.9 percent of carbon dioxide emissions in the United States electricity sector even though it only generated 31.2 percent of electricity in 2017. Air pollution from burning coal contributes to respiratory, cardiovascular, and neurological health effects, among others.

Despite promises by political entities to save coal, saving coal as an energy source appears unlikely. Coal power projects are declining in the U.S. and around the world as renewables gain traction (renewables even surpassed coal in U.S. electricity generation for the first time this April).

The American Ceramic Society

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An article featuring Joseph Cohen’s artwork mentions that it was created at Rice using laser-induced graphene, a technique pioneered by James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering. Tour is quoted in a Medical News Today article about his research that determined polyethylene glycol and graphene quantum dots from common coal are just as effective at halting damage from superoxide and hydrogen peroxides as materials studied in 2013.

The Rice lab of chemist James Tour presented laser-induced graphene (LIG) in 2014 to the world, and currently, the scientists are creating art with the method, which involves changing carbon in a regular polymer or other material into microscopic flakes of graphene.

LIG is metallic and can conduct electricity. The interconnected flakes are effectively a wire that could reinforce electronic artworks.

The paper in the American Chemical Society journal ACS Applied Nano Materials – merely titled “Graphene Art” – illustrates how the lab and Houston artist and co-author Joseph Cohen produced LIG portraits and prints, including a graphene-motivated landscape referred to as “Where Do I Stand?”


AZoNano

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An article featuring Joseph Cohen’s artwork mentions that it was created at Rice using laser-induced graphene, a technique pioneered by James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering. Tour is quoted in a Medical News Today article about his research that determined that polyethylene glycol and graphene quantum dots from common coal are just as effective at halting damage from superoxide and hydrogen peroxides as materials studied in 2013.

• The ink-free art is made by shining a laser into paper treated with a fire-retardant
• The energy of the laser beam turns carbon into microscopic flakes of graphene
• Now an artist is using the graphene as a unique medium for their ultramodern art
• The team has also created more traditional portraits and landscapes with lasers
• With graphene conducting electricity the method could make electronic art

Daily Mail (This article also appeared in Infosurhoy.)

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Researchers may have found a way to prevent certain medical conditions from overwhelming the body’s natural antioxidant system.
Traumatic events, such as brain injuries, strokes, and heart attacks affect millions of people each year and can be fatal. The World Health Organization (WHO) lists stroke as the world’s second biggest killer.

All of these conditions involve oxidative stress, which is a bodily imbalance between the levels of free radicals and antioxidants.

In the case of traumatic brain injuries, the number of free radicals increases, resulting in tissue damage and, potentially, organ dysfunction. This imbalance can also lead to the lasting effects of heart attack and stroke.


Medical News Today (This article also appeared in MD Linx.)

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An article featuring Joseph Cohen’s artwork mentions that was created at Rice using laser-induced graphene, a technique pioneered by James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering. Bruce Weisman, professor of chemistry, materials science and nanoengineering; Paul Cherukuri, executive director of the BioScience Research Collaborative; and alumnus Daniel Heller are mentioned.

(Nanowerk News) When you read about electrifying art, “electrifying” isn’t usually a verb. But an artist working with a Rice University lab is in fact making artwork that can deliver a jolt.

The Rice lab of chemist James Tour introduced laser-induced graphene (LIG) to the world in 2014, and now the researchers are making art with the technique, which involves converting carbon in a common polymer or other material into microscopic flakes of graphene.

Nanowerk (This article also appeared in Phys.org.)

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The research of James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering, is featured in two articles.

Researchers from Rice University, the Texas A&M Health Science Center and the McGovern Medical School at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) have found that graphene quantum dots drawn from common coal may be the basis for an effective antioxidant for people who suffer traumatic brain injuries, strokes or heart attacks.

Graphene-Info

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