Until now, the high cost of graphene production has been the major roadblock in its commercialiZation. Previously, graphene was grown in a highly-controlled environment with explosive compressed gases, requiring long hours of operation at high temperatures and extensive vacuum processing. Australian CSIRO scientists have developed a novel “GraphAir” technology which eliminates the need for such a highly-controlled environment. The technology grows graphene film in ambient air with a natural precursor, making its production faster and simpler. “This ambient-air process for graphene fabrication is fast, simple, safe, potentially scalable, and integration-friendly,” CSIRO scientist Dr Zhao Jun Han, co-author of the paper published today in Nature Communications said. “Our unique technology is expected to reduce the cost of graphene production and improve the uptake in new applications.” GraphAir transforms soybean oil – a renewable, natural material – into graphene fil...