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Salgenx has developed a way to produce graphene on demand from its saltwater flow battery. The company claims it can produce graphene for less than $1.25 a gram.
Salgenx has developed a graphene production method using its saltwater redox flow battery. The membraneless battery is charged and discharged by an electrolyzer that splits sodium chloride (NaCl) into sodium (Na) and chlorine.
“Chlorine is stored in the aqueous electrolyte, while sodium is stored in the cathode,” Greg Giese, CEO of Salgenx , explains to pv magazine . “In this case, the cathode is made up of a sacrificial material, graphite, which intercalates sodium. Salgenx applies a proprietary technique that exfoliates the graphite into individual graphene layers, which can be further processed for higher purity.”
The graphene exfoliation process occurs during charging due to an electrochemical process. When an electrical potential is applied to the host graphite, charged species from the electrolyte intercalate into the intercalated galleries of the graphite and generate gaseous products that contribute to structural expansion, according to a recent paper on the subject.
The method does not consume sodium, but instead leaves it for the battery discharge process. Salgenx claims it produces graphene for less than $1.25 a gram, compared to an average graphene price of between $100 and $400 a gram. “Salgenx’s flow battery system typically takes 4-6 hours to charge, typically at off-peak hours, allowing simultaneous graphene production to improve payback and become a revenue model,” says the US tech startup its a statement.
The on-demand graphene production machine will initially target the carbon and glass fiber manufacturing sector, but can reportedly be applied to any graphene additive space.
In March, Salgenx said it had developed a system that uses electricity stored in its battery to produce clean drinking water from seawater. |
