Hi readers! you must have heard about Graphene (a wonder and proven super material: I have already blogged on it).
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon: one of the most important elements in nature which can be found in daily life objects like the lead of a pencil. It is known for its toughness, flexibility, light weight, high resistance, and exceptional mechanical, electrical, and thermal properties.
Graphene is used in applications such as electronics, energy storage, sensors, coatings, mixtures, biomedical devices and many others.
Graphene is more than forty times stronger than a diamond and more than three hundred times stronger than A36 structural steel.
A36 steel is a carbon structural steel used in the manufacture of welded and bolted metal structures for industrial and civil construction and bridge building. A36 steel is also used in the manufacture of products and parts for general construction and mechanical engineering purposes.
Graphene is found in China, Mozambique, Brazil and India but,
China is ranked as the biggest producer of graphene globally.
Layers of graphene sheets can provide NIJ (National Institute of Justice standard which means the armor can withstand armor-piercing).
Level 3A ballistic protection means it can stop 357 Sig FMG FN bullets traveling at a velocity of ~1470 ft./s) and 44 Magnum SJHP rounds at a velocity of ~1430 ft./s.
44 magnum is a 10.9x33mm rimmed large-bore cartridge originally designed for revolvers but can also be adopted for carbines (a light weight firearm) and rifles.
The method used by Humans for graphene production involve multiple oxidation agents which make the process very expensive that’s why one gram of graphene made with this method can cost more than US$ 150) which is a barrier to commercial exploitation of this wonder material.
Dear readers! HEALTH reported on March 5th, 2024, that,
“Graphene Appears safe to humans in first of its kind clinical Trial.”
Exciting news, isn’t it?
The new research related with preliminary clinical trial conducted on a few volunteers suggests that our respiratory system can tolerate at least short-term exposure to low concentrations of graphene nanoparticles.
Unfortunately, humans have an terrible track record of unintentionally poisoning ourselves and the life around us with our technological breakthroughs. While their uses have undeniably advanced our societies, everything from transport to pesticides to plastics has come at a cost to our health and wellbeing.
But, researchers are now prepared to break this tradition by putting one of the most promising new materials to a direct health test across Europe and the UK. Cardiologist in University of Edinburgh claimed that,
“Nanomaterials such as graphene hold great promise for our lives provided it is manufactured in a safe way”.
After conducted decade of laboratory tests on mice and human tissues, cardiologist in University of Edinburgh and their colleagues recruited 14 volunteers to directly inhale different concentrations of graphene oxide nanoparticles. Their blood pressure, clotting, and inflammation markers were measured along with lung function before and after breathing in the particles and every two hours during the exposure. The process was repeated again two weeks later.
The volunteers neither experience any clear changes in their respiratory or cardiovascular systems, nor show signs of inflammation after inhaling the very pure form of graphene oxide whereas,
similar concentrations of diesel exhaust produce signs of cardiovascular dysfunction, the researchers explain.
However, the researchers point out that since our body’s inflammation pathways take longer to respond than the six hour duration of the current study and our experience with plastic particles shows that some of the particles react very differently once they’ve interacted with the outside world.
To add more to this, the team noted a small increase in blood clotting when they tested graphene in model of an injured artery outside of the human body. Hence, the tiny nanoparticles, thousands of times thinner than our hairs, may not yet be completely clear for health uses but laid the foundations for future investigations to establish which properties of graphene materials determine their biological actions. The results of the current experiment being reported hare is only a starting point for establishing this material’s safety limits.
“Being able to explore the safety of this unique material in human volunteers is a huge step forward in our understanding of how graphene could affect the body,”
Future studies will include testing different forms of graphene and longer-term exposures. This research was published in Nature Nanotechnology.
That’s all for now dear reader. Enjoy reading another update from Tsunami of technology and I will see you next week. Take care, Bye.
