Texas researchers turn toast into high-value graphene

In Texas, researchers at Rice University have converted a number of lignin-based materials, including toast, into graphene.

Led by Yieu Chyan and Ruquan Ye, the team used a commercial laser to create graphene patterns on toast.  “This is not ink,” James Tour, Rice University chemist and co-author of the study tells Cosmos Magazine. “This is taking the material itself and converting it into graphene.” They also were able to create graphene patterns on paper, cardboard, cloth, coal, potatoes, and coconuts. The researchers hypothesize that any material with a high enough carbon content could be turned into graphene—a material that is transparent, light, strong, and an efficient conductor of heat and electricity. Potential applications include tissue engineering, water filtration, solar cells and glass-based electronics. The work was published in a recent issue of ACS Nano.