Phase 3

 Article #1 The Long Game - Anonymous (Macmillan Publishers Ltd.)

Macmillan Publishers Ltd.“The Long Game”. (2011). Nature, 473 (7348), page 419-419. Retrieved from Science & Technology (ProQuest). 7 March, 2013. https://ezproxy.hacc.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/870327994?accountid=11302

The article titled “The Long Game” from the Macmillan Publishers talks very briefly about the slow start of carbon-based electronics, more often referred to as graphene electronics. The author details some of the qualities that stand out about graphene such as its strength, thin material, and its flexible properties. They then go on to mention that even though these are great qualities to have, it does not improve performance, as graphene does not perform any better than other materials. There authors elude to the fact that so many scientists have made graphene into such a big deal, but it really is not all it is cracked up to  be, because there are many other materials that are far superior to graphene. It does not work well with digital electronics, which is a big presenting issue, because digital electronics are such a huge part of technology. As far as production goes, scientists have not been able to develop a way to create high-quality carbon sheets in bulk. The obstacle is that what is produced in bulk is inconsistent batch to batch, so scientists have only been able to create small batches, which is not efficient. Graphene does have potential to operate at high speeds within an electrical component, but the speed decreases and changes when it is exposed to the environment. The authors conclude that with time, graphene may be more a more successful product.

Article #2 Graphene for Energy Harvesting/Storage Devices and Printed Electronics - L. Grande, et al.

L. Grande, et al. (2012). “Graphene for Energy Harvesting / Storage Devices and Printed Electronics”. Particuology 10.1 page 1-8. Retrieved from ScienceDirect 7 March, 2013. doi:10.1016/j.partic.2011.12.001

In the article by L. Grande, et al., the authors take a scientific approach on the study of graphene. They attribute the growing interest and advances in graphene to the Nobel Prize that was won in Physics on the topic of graphene in 2010. They discuss some of the positive qualities of graphene and what may set it apart from another material that could be used with electronics. The authors discuss how the product is made and the chemical processes that it must go through in order to be suitable for use. They do make mention to the fact that it is not suitable for production in bulk, and give an explanation as to why this is not possible. The authors go into a very detailed analysis of the different applications of graphene in energy harvesting storage that can be used in solar cells, batteries, fuel cells, and supercapacitors. Graphene is a non-toxic material, making it safe to use as a type of ink. Although it would be beneficial to use within electronics because of the great qualities as well as the factor of speed, it’s most immediate applications are in making lighter parts. This includes car parts, aircraft parts, bicycle frames, etc. The article concludes with a summary of the positive things that graphene has to offer such as its non-toxicity, its wide variety of uses, and the different production styles.

I chose these two sources because I think that they gave a pretty good opposing viewpoint. I got to read about both sides of using carbon-based electronics and some of the implications as well as the benefits. I think that it is interesting how the first article just listed some things that were negative, but the second article also included some of those things, but had evidence to back up why it couldn’t work. For instance, they both mention that sheets of carbon cannot be produced in bulk, which is a setback. The second article explains why it is not possible to produce it in mass quantities, but in a way that it still emphasizes the positive uses of graphene despite some of the implications. The first article was very simple and easy to understand so that I could get a basic runaround of the material. The second article was a scientific study, so it was more difficult to understand, but I feel more informed. I wanted two very different articles, not just in viewpoints, but also in how it was written, and I think I was able to identify two that fit that criteria.

I have been becoming more familiar with the subject, but I know that I still have much to learn. I understand the basic uses of graphene, but not the science behind it. As far as an issue with graphene, I haven’t been able to identify that sticks out to me, but by identifying the pros and cons of the material through these two articles, I can do some more research to identify relevant controversies. The questions that I have are: why does graphene change so much when introduced to the environment? How does carbon play a role in the speed of electron mobility? The next thing that I hope to learn is what the difference is between graphene and the material that is used now within electronics.