University of NSW signs graphene deal with China cable company...

University of NSW signs graphene deal with China cable company

• THE AUSTRALIAN
• MAY 7, 2016 12:00AM

Materials science professor Sean Li. Picture: Britta Campion.
It is a Nobel prizewinning wonder material, one atom thick and 200 times as strong as steel, composed of the same element as diamonds.
Now, in what could turn out to be one of the biggest commercialisation deals for antipodean research, a Sydney team is harnessing graphene to fix an energy distribution glitch that leaks enough electricity to power Australia. The University of NSW has signed a deal with Hangzhou Cables, a listed subsidiary of Chinese manufacturing giant FCJ, to develop more efficient cables. The goal is a 5 per cent boost in electricity transmission in the world’s most populous country.
This would equate to an annual saving of 275 terawatt hours, eclipsing Australia’s total electricity consumption. “When you translate it into a massive grid, you begin to understand the economic and sustainability impacts you would have,” said UNSW vice-chancellor Ian Jacobs, who helped broker the deal — one of six research and development contracts the university has signed recently with Chinese companies.
Graphene is a form of carbon discovered in 2004 by two Manchester physicists who won the Nobel prize six years later. The thinnest known substance, it is also the lightest, strongest and most conductive. Its extraordinary flexibility, density and optical properties are being explored in products ranging from computer chips and fold-up TV screens to gas sensors, wastewater filters and condoms.

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Graphene is usually produced as a flaky powder. UNSW material scientist Sean Li has found a way of wiring the flakes together to exploit graphene’s electrical conductivity, which is 40 per cent better than copper’s.
Under the $20 million contract, Professor Li’s team will spend the next year developing a 10m prototype cable. The scientists will then work with their Chinese partner to develop a 1km-long version in China.
Hangzhou Cables plans to spawn a new entity to commercialise the technology on a global scale, exporting to other markets — notably northern Europe — as well as meeting Chinese demand. UNSW will retain 50 per cent of the intellectual property rights and take an equity stake in the new company.
Laurie Pearcey, who heads UNSW’s international arm, said the deal harnessed China’s manufacturing and research capability to bridge the notorious gap between Australian research and its commercial application.

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