China's graphene dilemma: it is difficult to sell products with empty capacity
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[The seemingly simple extraction method can obtain high-quality graphene, but the size of graphene can only be achieved by luck and it is difficult to mass-produce, because 1 mm thick graphite sheet can peel off 3 million layers of graphene. In addition to this, there are redox method, chemical vapor deposition method, ultrasonic stripping method, and the like. ]
[In terms of scientific research, China is a world leader in graphene research. According to the Intellectual Property Office of the People's Republic of China and the Wind database, the number of Chinese patent applications reached 7,925 in 2015, ranking first in the world. From the perspective of patent layout, enterprises and schools account for more than 80% of the total. The proportion of companies is lower than that of schools, and the speed of industrialization is limited. ]
[At present, there are only a few graphene companies capable of mass production in China. The reporter inquired about the public information of various official websites. For example, in Changzhou Sixth Element Materials Technology Co., Ltd., in November 2013, an automated production line with an annual output of 100 tons of graphite oxide (ene) was put into operation, and it is expected to produce 1,000 tons of powder per year in 2016. Body graphene, sales revenue of more than 600 million yuan. ]
As the most subversive new material in the 21st century, since the day of its birth, graphene has become a hot spot for the scientific and capital circles, and it carries as much praise and controversy.
Graphene is a two-dimensional crystal composed of carbon atoms with only one atomic layer thickness. As the only two-dimensional carbon material, the speciality of the structure also gives it an advantage that other carbon materials do not have in strength. High, strong toughness, high light transmittance, light weight, good electrical conductivity and excellent thermal conductivity.
Hard to manufacture
In the view of Ding Guqiao, a researcher at the Shanghai Institute of Microsystems of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (hereinafter referred to as the “Small Instituteâ€), the excellent performance brought about by the unique structure has also become a limiting factor for the popularity of graphene materials to some extent. "In terms of material structure, a two-dimensional material composed of a single carbon atom layer cannot be used alone, and graphene itself is saturated with chemical bonds, and it is difficult to recombine with other materials." Ding Guqiao introduced to the "First Financial Daily" .
Ding Guqiao's research group has been conducting basic scientific research on graphene materials since 2009, and is constantly pursuing more environmentally friendly, higher quality and large-scale graphene material preparation technology, which is gradually developed from the commonly used strong oxidation technology. Mechanical shear stripping technology with little or no strong acid strong oxidizing agents.
This stripping process is the same as the method of separating the graphene from graphite materials by the physicists of the University of Manchester, André Heim and Konstantin Novoselov, using a relatively weak layer between each atomic layer. The bonding force is adhered to both sides of the graphite sheet with a transparent tape, and repeatedly peeled and peeled until a graphene having only one atomic thickness is obtained.
Although the seemingly simple extraction method can obtain high-quality graphene, the size of graphene can only be determined by luck and it is difficult to mass-produce, because 1 mm thick graphite sheet can peel off 3 million layers of graphene. In addition to this, there are redox method, chemical vapor deposition method, ultrasonic stripping method, and the like.
"The graphene prepared by most chemical methods is not pure graphene. It is essentially multi-layered graphite accumulation, and the product quality cannot be guaranteed. The chemical vapor deposition of graphene film has high cost and low yield, which is difficult to mass-produce. Dr. Wang Wei, Global Partner of Frost & Sullivan and President of Greater China, told The First Financial Daily.
At present, graphene mainly has two forms, one is a graphene film, and the other is a graphene powder similar to carbon black, and the application directions of the two are also different. Graphene in the form of film has been produced on a large scale, including Chongqing Moxi Technology Co., Ltd., Changzhou 2D Carbon, Wuxi Gefei and other companies.
But graphene powder is the most controversial area. Some companies and organizations confuse single-layer and multi-layer, and graphene microchips or graphene nanosheets with thicknesses far exceeding 10 atomic layers are also called graphene. "At present, many companies in China claim to be able to do 100 tons, 500 tons or even thousands of tons. The exaggerated composition is relatively large, and most of them are not real graphene. It is difficult for non-professionals to distinguish clearly." Ding Guqiao said.
Scientific research and industry are not effectively connected
At present, there are more than one graphene production enterprises in China, especially in Changzhou, Qingdao, Chongqing, Wuxi, Shenzhen and other places. However, unlike overseas companies such as Samsung, IBM, Nokia, Intel, and Dow Chemical, which promote industrial applications, China's graphene production is mostly concentrated in small and medium-sized companies, and large companies are less involved.
However, from a scientific perspective, China is a world leader in graphene research. According to the Intellectual Property Office of the People's Republic of China and the Wind database, the number of Chinese patent applications reached 7,925 in 2015, ranking first in the world. From the perspective of patent layout, enterprises and schools account for more than 80% of the total. The proportion of companies is lower than that of schools, and the speed of industrialization is limited.
According to Wang Wei’s observation, “China has a large number of scientific research personnel and achievements, but there are still few high-precision original scientific research results. Most of them use tracking research methods, and there are still few major innovations. The research results are mainly concentrated on In the field of basic research, high-end application technology is still relatively weak."
Empty production capacity is sluggish
What is more noteworthy is that the breakthrough in application technology has made it difficult for the downstream of the industrial chain to form. Many companies claiming to be able to produce hundreds of tons of graphene have no capacity to sell products.
At present, there are only a few graphene companies capable of mass production in China. The reporter inquired about the public information of various official websites. For example, in Changzhou Sixth Element Materials Technology Co., Ltd., in November 2013, an automated production line with an annual output of 100 tons of graphite oxide (ene) was put into operation, and it is expected to produce 1,000 tons of powder per year in 2016. Body graphene, sales revenue of more than 600 million yuan.
However, according to the 2016 mid-year performance report, the net profit for the first half of 2016 was -13,367,700 yuan, a decrease of 38.83% over the same period of last year. Graphene powder revenue increased by about 1,227,100 yuan, and touch sensor revenue increased by 3,227,700 yuan. Although the downstream market application of products gradually opened, sales were far less than expected. The Changzhou two-dimensional carbon material has a net profit of -52.14 million yuan, and Qingdao Huagao's fine profit is -283.8 million yuan.
Empty production capacity, investing a large amount of money in equipment and personnel, but it is difficult to sell products, becoming the current situation of graphene production in China. Due to downstream demand, most graphene enterprises still cannot find stable business models and profit models. .
In the view of graphene industry experts, although the downstream manufacturers' enthusiasm for the application of graphene has been greatly improved since 2015, most of the downstream entrepreneurs on the market still have a concept of graphene, and it is not clear how to use it.
“After many companies purchase related products such as graphene materials, they do not change the processing technology for product characteristics. In this case, even if the quality of graphene materials is high, it is difficult to exert its superiority, resulting in 'good materials, The phenomenon of using 'not good's often appears." Wang Wei said.
In addition, the transition from new materials to new products is long, and downstream companies must ensure the stability of products with graphene materials. Take the example of a battery manufacturer. It takes about 3 months for a batch of products to produce test results. The same product should be tested for stability in 5-6 batches to determine its stability and decide whether to import it.
"The high cost of graphene and the incompatibility of process characteristics in lithium batteries make the technology of 'graphene battery' close to non-existence." Wang said bluntly.
In addition, some companies do not want to produce anything that is ruined, and there is no need to sneak around, making the market's perception of graphene vague, and when immature products are blindly placed on the market, there is a great potential risk, also in battery production. For example, how to use security still needs constant testing.
Industrialization path
In the industrialization of graphene, the driving force of large foreign companies is particularly obvious. Taking Korea as an example, since graphene has great application prospects in Samsung's main business field, it attaches great importance to the research and application of graphene. It not only established its own R&D center, but also cooperated with Sungkyunkwan University in Korea to accumulate. A large number of patents related to graphene.
In the United States, there are large companies such as IBM, Intel, Boeing, etc. The favorable entrepreneurial environment has spawned many small graphene enterprises, forming a relatively complete industrial chain, covering everything from preparation and application research to the production of graphene products to the downstream applications. It has accelerated the industrialization and application process of graphene, and the industrial layout is diversified.
In China, the development model of “enterprise + R&D institution + incubator + accelerator†is still in its infancy, and the stage objectives, key tasks and major projects of graphene industrialization technology route and industrialization route and industrial development still need to be further clarified.
Downstream applications are fed back to scientific research. What kind of performance products do downstream manufacturers need? What are the acceptable prices? In which areas, scientific research institutions can conduct more research and development.
“The graphene industry can truly exude vitality and sustainability only if it is supported by downstream demand.†Wang Wei said.