World's Lightest Material "Graphene Airgel" Chinese scientists have succeeded in developing the world's lightest material. It was stated that the graphene airgel material, whose mass is only 6/1 of the air, could revolutionize the fight against oil spills.
Researchers at Zhejiang University in China's Hangzhou province have developed a substance with a mass of 0.16 milligrams per cubic centimeter. Developed by the research team led by Professor Gao Chao, graphene airgel stands out with its ability to absorb oil, as well as being extremely easy to manufacture.
Produced by replacing the liquid compound of a gel with some kind of gas, the graphene airgel has an extremely low mass even though it looks solid. Graphene is known as the carbon atom that is only one atom thick.
Speaking to China Daily, Gao said, "carbon airgel can help us a lot with oil spills, water pollution and even air pollution."
According to the research published in the journal Nature, graphene airgel can be used as an energy storage insulation and a sound absorber, as well as to combat environmental pollution.
THEY TAKE THE TITLE FROM THE USA
Producing the world's lightest material has been the goal of scientists for many years. The US University of California Irvine and the California Institute of Technology developed a nickel airgel with a mass of 2011 milligrams per cubic centimeter in their study in 0.9 and produced the lightest material.
The airgel produced by Gao and his team was cooled and dried, thereby purifying the moisture and grapheme in the carbon nanotubes while maintaining the integrity of the material. Thus, the lightest material in the world emerged.
Graphene airgel, which is light enough not to bend the leaves of a flower, has a very elastic and durable structure despite its appearance. So much so that the material expands when squeezed, and bounces when it hits the surface.
OIL ABSORBER
Organic solvents used in petroleum cleaning can absorb oil up to 10 times their own weight.
Graphene (carbon) airgel can absorb 900 times its own weight in oil. What's more, the airgel quickly attracts organic compounds. 1 gram of airgel absorbs 68.8 grams of organic compounds per second. This makes the material a very important cleaning agent against oil spills in the seas.
Source : ntvmsnbc
📩 31/08/2013 23:17
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