The publication of ABNT ISO/TS 21356-1:2023 – Nanotechnologies – Structural characterization of graphene – Part 1: Graphene in particulate form and in dispersions, the first Brazilian standard on graphene characterization, represents a significant advance for the industry. The assessment is by Erlon Ferreira, researcher at the Materials Metrology Division of Inmetro.
“The publication of the national standard represents an important advance, as today there are barriers to commercialization that impede the advancement of products containing graphene and that need to be overcome, through reliable measurement protocols”, commented Ferreira.
According to him, this advance is due to the superlative properties of graphene and its applicability in countless types of technological products, bringing benefits to the materials that are currently available on the market.
Still according to the researcher, standards like this are essential so that graphene can be used as an additive in industrial products such as composites, hybrid materials, civil construction structures, paints and coatings, among others.
According to ABNT (Brazilian Association of Technical Standards), the Brazilian standard is an identical adoption of the international publication, which was prepared with the collaboration of more than 30 countries, including Brazil, within ISO/TC 229 – Nanotechnologies. The standard was prepared by the Brazilian Nanotechnology Committee (ABNT/CEE-089).
Also in accordance with ABNT, ABNT ISO/TS 21356-1 specifies the sequence of methods to characterize the structural properties of graphene, graphene bilayer and graphene nanoplatelets from particulates and liquid dispersions using a variety of measurement techniques performed typically after isolation of individual flakes on a substrate.
Suggestions for measurement protocols, sample preparation routines, and data analysis for characterizing graphenes in particulate form and dispersions are also provided.
Potential of graphene in Brazil
Ferreira also highlights that graphene is an excellent electrical conductor, 200 times more resistant than steel, much thinner than a sheet of paper and with the potential to act in several industrial segments.
Brazil currently has a huge reserve of raw materials and has been carrying out advanced research in the area of measuring the fundamental properties of graphene, such as those carried out at Inmetro, which houses one of the most modern centers for the characterization of nanomaterials.
“The intention is to standardize methods and validate results, in order to ensure that a given application is using the right type of graphene or material derived from it”, commented Ferreira.
