• Question: Have you ever been able to experiment with graphene?

    Asked by Roptyparty to Shane on 7 Nov 2017.
    • Photo: Shane Mcdonagh

      Shane Mcdonagh answered on 7 Nov 2017:

      Hi there,

      Actually yes!! So some of the work we do is all about turning things like food waste, grass, seaweed, and manure into a fuel by a process called Anaerobic Digestion. You put all the waste into a big tank and let the bacteria that live in there turn it into gas, that we can then use just the same way we use natural gas.

      Graphene is a really good conductor which means it allows electricity and heat to move through it easily (think the opposite of insulation in your house) and so is good for chemical reactions. Our experiments have shown that by adding small amounts of graphene to the big tanks along with the waste, it helps us to produce more gas quicker.

      The big problem is graphene is still very expensive so we need to find alternatives of make it cheaper.

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