Haydale (AIM: HAYD), the global advanced materials group, is pleased to announce that, further to its announcement of 25 June 2018 in relation to its partnership with the GEIC, Haydale will participate at today’s official opening of the GEIC. As a Tier One member of the GEIC, Haydale will be showcasing some of its current graphene products and also its innovative plasma functionalisation reactor. The GEIC’s official opening today is to be performed by HRH The Duke of York and includes many high-ranking officials including a deputation from the GEIC’s main sponsor, the MASDAR Institute.

On Tuesday, 11 December 2018, the GEIC is hosting an industry day with over 260 business leaders who will tour the facility and see at first-hand the graphene applications and products on display, including those from Haydale. There will be specific workshops (including one emphasising the key science of functionalisation) to show graphene products in the market, a range of applications and some of the projects scheduled to start development at the GEIC in 2019.

David Banks Interim Executive Chairman at Haydale, commented: “The GEIC demonstrates how the graphene supply chain works with industry to move technology into applications for commercialisation. We are expecting that our leading involvement with the GEIC will assist Haydale to build progressively on the £1.0 million of revenues that we generated from sales of graphene products and services in our last financial year.”

Ray Gibbs, President, Business Development at Haydale, commented: “The equipment, application engineers, infrastructure and knowledge in Manchester’s graphene hub is world-class. Being an integral part of this initiative puts Haydale at the forefront of accelerating the use and adoption of advanced materials, including graphene.  We are pleased that three of our commercial customers are joining us at the start of the GEIC in utilising this world first facility to get innovative products to market.”

James Baker, CEO of GEIC, commented: “GEIC is a key component of the University’s strategy for Graphene@Manchester. With the ecosystem we are creating here working collaboratively with our Tier One partners, including Haydale, we can accelerate the commercialisation of real-world applications and transition graphene and other 2D materials from the lab to the marketplace.”

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Notes to Editors

Haydale is a global technologies and materials group that facilitates the integration of graphene and other nanomaterials into the next generation of commercial technologies and industrial materials.  With expertise in graphene, silicon carbide and other nanomaterials, Haydale is able to deliver improvements in electrical, thermal and mechanical properties, as well as toughness.  Haydale has granted patents for its technologies in Europe, USA, Australia, Japan and China and operates from six sites in the UK, USA and the Far East.

Graphene and functionalisation
Graphene (and certain other nanomaterials) is totally inert and not easily dispersed in complex functional fluids (eg inks and coatings), nor will it readily mix into thermoset resins and composite structures. In order to obtain the best results from graphene, it is necessary to attach to it the chemical ‘hooks’ that overcome these problems through a process known as functionalisation. Graphene on its own has minimal applications yet, once functionalised, when added to a host fluid or material is usually only required in very small quantities (often <1% by weight) to achieve a major transformation in the host’s performance. Functionalised graphene enables the user to exploit its thermal, mechanical and electrical properties, or a mixture of these properties, but this requires experimentation and scientific development. Haydale has a sponsored student to work with its plasma functionalisation reactor and the leading Manchester University academics to rapidly develop this understanding further as part of Haydale’s commercialisation strategy.

The GEIC and Haydale, together with the National Physical Laboratory and the Centre for Process Innovation (which also has a Haydale reactor), are developing this important science.

For more information please visit: www.haydale.com

Twitter: @haydalegraphene