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Grapheneused to make graphene-copper compositethats

500 times stronger By Sebastian Anthonyon August 27, 2013 at 8:59 am

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Researchers at the Korean Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) have created

composite materials using graphene that are up to 500 times stronger than the ra! non"composite

material# This is the first time that graphene has $een successfully used to create strong composite

materials % and due to the tiny amounts of graphene used (&ust 0#0000' $y eight) this

$reathrough could lead to much faster commercial adoption than pure graphene! hich is still

incredi$ly hard to produce in large *uantities#

At this point! e shouldn+t $e holly surprised that graphene % hich holds a huge num$er of

superlative titles! including the strongest material non to man % can also $e used to create strong

composite materials# In this case! the KAIST researchers created a copper"graphene composite that

has 500 times the tensile strength of copper (1#5 gigapascals)! and a nicel"grapehene composite that

has 1,0 times the tensile strength of nicel (' gigapascals)# This is still some ay off graphene+s

tensile strength of 1-0 ./a % hich is a$out 00 times stronger than steel (00 2/a) % $ut it+s still

very! very strong# At 1#5 ./a! copper"graphene is a$out 50 stronger than titanium! or a$out three

times as strong as structural aluminium alloys#

http://www.extremetech.com/author/santhonyhttp://www.extremetech.com/author/santhonyhttp://www.extremetech.com/extreme/164961-graphene-used-to-make-graphene-copper-composite-thats-500-times-stronger#disqus_threadhttp://www.extremetech.com/extreme/164961-graphene-used-to-make-graphene-copper-composite-thats-500-times-stronger#disqus_threadhttp://www.extremetech.com/author/santhony

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To create these composites! the KAIST researchers use a process called 34 (chemical vapor

deposition) to gro monolayers (one"atom"thic layers) of graphene# These monolayers are then

deposited onto a thin film of metal (copper or nicel)# Another layer of metal is then evaporated (a

method of deposition) on top of the graphene# This process is repeated! until you have a sandich

consisting of a fe layers of metal and graphene# ifferent metal thicnesses ere tested ($eteen

60nm and -00nm)! and it as found that thinner layers result in much stronger composites# 7ecause

graphene is so thin! the amount used is a$solutely tiny8 9ust 0#0000' of the metals $y eight#

http://www.extremetech.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/graphene-preventing-slip-planes.jpghttp://www.extremetech.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/graphene-nickel-copper-composite-creation-diagram.jpg

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The reason these composites are so strong is that the graphene stops the metal atoms from slipping

and dislocating under stress# In a solid metal! if a slip plane forms (due to stress)! the atoms ill

readily slip apart! causing a fracture# The layers of graphene stop the metal atoms from sliding % the

metal atoms cannot physically pass through the super"strong graphene % so no fractures can form

(pictured a$ove)# It+s essentially the metallic e*uivalent of steel"reinforced concrete# In case you ere

ondering! this is also one of the primary reasons hy metals are nearly alays used in alloy form %$ecause there+s a mi: of different metal atoms ith different atom si;es! it+s much harder for slip

planes to form#

2oving forard! the researchers ill no need to

find a ay of mass"producing these graphene"$ased composites! prefera$ly ith a roll"to"roll or metalsinteringprocess# These composites! due to their massive strength! could find myriad uses in the

automotive and aerospace industries! or simply as a ne tool for structural engineers and industrial

design# 9ust the sheer fact that e no no that graphene can $e used as a composite is massive

nes! too8 If graphene can suddenly turn soft copper into a structural material! imagine hat it might

do for something lie titanium or steel! or even commercial polymers lie Kevlar#