International.
The theoretical properties of graphene at the mechanical, electrical and thermal level are very attractive at the industrial level, which is why great efforts are being made to transfer them to real applications and products.
The European project Nanomaster, developed during the last four years by a total of 14 partners including Aimplas, has made possible the development of masterbatches (or concentrates) of graphene, nanographite and expanded graphite that bring closer the possibility of using these particles in the conventional plastics processing industry and for additive manufacturing processes, such as 3D printing and laser sintering.
Plastic nanomaterials: The project has allowed to conclude that the most important factors in the synthesis of graphene are the number of layers, the diameter and the amount of oxygen present in the particle. Graphene powder is obtained from the exfoliation of graphite. The more the number of layers is reduced, the more effective it will be, although, if we speak properly, we could not call graphene a particle with more than one layer of carbon atoms. Therefore, the synthesis of the particle is of great importance to achieve interesting properties in the developed plastic compounds.
The correct processing of graphene and nanographite is also fundamental and one of the works of Aimplas in the process has been precisely the development of nanocomposites and graphene masterbatch for use in injection and extrusion. To this end, the processing conditions have been optimized in each of the manufacturing stages and with the help of multinationals such as Rochling, Philips or Lego, parts have been developed for sectors such as automotive, electrical-electronic and toy sector. AIMPLAS has also developed materials for new manufacturing technologies: rods for 3D printing and powder for laser sintering.
The project, funded under the Seventh Framework Programme and project number 2011-6 with grant agreement number 285718, has had the participation of multidisciplinary partners covering the entire value chain: Netcomposites, Lego, Philips, Rochling, Promolding, Volum-E, Create It Real, Lati, Imerys Graphite and Carbon, Avanzare, Dti, Oti E Iom.
Source: Aimplas.
