Would you believe it if we told you that one material made of a single layer of carbon atoms that are bonded together in a repeating pattern of hexagons could change the way that electronic components are made?

Believe it or not, this emerging material, otherwise known as graphene, has taken the scientific research world by storm through advancements that suggest this material could boost internet speeds, act as a touch-sensitive coating and prolong the lives of computers.

It all began when two Russian scientists, Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov, from the University of Manchester, were testing flakes of carbon graphite in an attempt to explore its electrical properties. After some testing with the material, both scientists decided to make the flakes thinner with the help of Scotch tape.

Both scientists used the tape to peel off a layer of the material from its block and then continued to peel off further layers from the original flake until they were able to get the flakes down to only a few atoms thick. Soon after, they realized that by repeatedly peeling off the layers,  they could reach the thinnest possible layer, one-atom thick.

The original idea of the two scientists working with this material is based on the fact that they wanted to investigate to see if graphite could be used as a transistor; the fundamental switching device that is at the core of computing. The idea to use Scotch tape came from both scientists hearing that other researchers had used the tape to clean the mineral before putting it under the lens.

Just like diamonds are a girl’s best friend, graphene is a scientist’s best friend and is, in fact, stronger than a diamond; yet, it is one million times thinner than paper. It’s so thin that it is considered to be two dimensional. This material has the ability to conduct electricity and heat better than anything that has ever been discovered to date. It is likely that graphene will be an integral part in many future products and processes.

So how strong is graphene? James Hone, a mechanical engineering professor at Columbia University, puts graphene’s strength into perspective. Hone said that graphene is so strong that it would take an elephant, balanced on a pencil, to break through a sheet of graphene as thin as a piece of Saran wrap.

Now that you can wrap your mind around the strength of graphene and how it was discovered, you might be wondering, “why is there so much hype surrounding this material?” Well, for one, graphene has the potential to be used in common everyday situations and products. For instance, graphene can be used to desalinate seawater in order to make it drinkable. Many scientists believe that when water passes through graphene’s tiny pores that the filter can potentially transform salt water into drinking water within a year.

Right now, you might be reading this blog on your computer. Many hope that graphene can replace silicone chips; in fact, IBM has already created pilot computers that use the material to achieve the record-setting speed of 100GHz.

Perhaps you are reading this blog from your smartphone.  Samsung, among other companies, is beginning to use graphene to develop their touchscreen interfaces, because of its transparent and conductive properties.

There are a variety of ways that graphene can be used.  For instance, New York scientists have designed a polymer coating that contains this form of carbon and discovered that it protected steel from rusting for up to a month. This is good news for car owners who do not want their car to rust. The graphene works to repel water and delays the electrochemical reactions that oxidize iron.

This discovery of graphene has allowed many scientists to exercise their ideas in the hopes of furthering scientific research. Only time will tell just how many products and processes are infused with the ultra-thin and ultra-strong material otherwise known as graphene.

Copyright Davison 2013

Sources:

http://gigaom.com/2013/07/15/what-is-graphene-heres-what-you-need-to-know-about-a-material-that-could-be-the-next-silicon/

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/the-graphene-story-how-andrei-geim-and-kostya-novoselov-hit-on-a-scientific-breakthrough-that-changed-the-world-by-playing-with-sticky-tape-8539743.html

Media:

http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/147456-researchers-successfully-grow-defect-free-graphene-commercial-uses-now-in-sight

http://gigaom.com/2013/07/15/what-is-graphene-heres-what-you-need-to-know-about-a-material-that-could-be-the-next-silicon/

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If you don’t patent your product, you never have to make the ingredients public – a simple way to keep your secret recipe under lock and key. But, that doesn’t mean competitors won’t make a run at your throne.

DR. PEPPER

Wouldn’t you like to be a Pepper, too? That won’t be happening for aspiring soda-making rivals anytime soon, because another soft drink with a famously secret formula is Dr. Pepper, which is made from 23 natural and artificial flavors. Only three people are said to be privy to the recipe, which was invented in 1885 by pharmacist Charles Alderton in Waco, Texas, and is kept locked in a vault in company headquarters in nearby Plano.

The company has gone on the record to deny one common guess at an ingredient: There is no prune juice in Dr Pepper. – Yahoo

Dr. Nos

• Dr. Topper – Clover Valley
• Dr. Riffic – Eckerd Drug
• Dr. Thunder — Dollar General

WD-40

The world’s best known household lubricant got its secret agentesque name in 1953 from its inventor, Norm Larsen, and it stands for “Water Displacer—40th attempt.” An article in The Wall Street Journal reported that the formula is in a bank vault and has only been taken out twice—when changing banks and on the product’s 50th birthday, when CEO Garry Ridge rode on a horse into Times Square while wearing a suit of armor and carrying the formula. He said the company mixes the concentrate in three locations, then distributes it to aerosol manufacturing partners worldwide.

The company reveals what’s not in the secret formula on its FAQ page: WD-40 Multi-Use Product does not contain silicone, kerosene, water, graphite, or chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). – Yahoo

Slick Competitors

• Hosa Cable D5S6 Deoxit Contact Cleaner Spray
• Boeshield T-9 Lubricant
• 3-IN-ONE 10041 Professional Silicone Spray Lubricant

KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken)

KFC’s “Secret Recipe of 11 Herbs and Spices” for its original fried chicken recipe is nearly as famous as the former Kentucky Fried Chicken ad slogan “finger lickin’ good.” A section of the company’s website is now devoted to spreading the lore about the spice blend. It states that Colonel Harland Sanders kept his recipe in his mind and used to carry the mixture in his car, but today it’s kept under lock and key in a Louisville, Ky., safe. One company blends part of the spice recipe, and another company mixes the rest, so that neither party has the entire recipe. The Colonel commented how low-security of an operation he and his wife, Claudia, ran when he was starting out. “After I hit the road selling franchises for my chicken, that left Claudia behind to fill the orders for the seasoned flour mix. She’d fill the day’s orders in little paper sacks with cellophane linings and package them for shipment. Then, she had to put them on a midnight train.”

Many reverse-engineered recipes for KFC-style fried chicken include speculation that the flavor-enhancing additive MSG is part of the secret mix. Others claim the distinctive KFC chicken experience owes a lot to the pressure-frying technique, which is patented. — Yahoo

KFC’s Wingmen

• Church’s Chicken
• Popeye’s Chicken
• Kennedy Fried Chicken

It takes something special to stand out from the crowd. That’s why Davison has spent over 20 years perfecting the Davison Inventing Method – a better way to help clients develop their ideas.

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