Balancing Remarkable Properties and Commercial Challenges: To What Extent Can Graphene Revolutionize Future Technologies?

Abstract

The current dissertation focuses on the question of whether the exceptional electrical and mechanical properties of graphene can lend themselves to transformative applications occurring at scale or only serve special applications. The extreme reliance on graphene instead of the larger category of two-dimensional materials allowed comparison of the electron mobility (~200,000 cm²/V·s) and tensile strength (~130 GPa) of graphene with current material technologies (silicon, copper, and steel). In a systematic literature review of peer-reviewed Q1/Q2 journals, industry reports, and conference results selected with discretion, I compared the potential of graphene as applied to analogue electronics with the fact that it has zero band gap, its mechanical robustness in the laboratory with the issues of preventing defects and integrating composites. A major cost analysis showed that production of existing CVD-derived monolayer graphene was so expensive ($1000 to 5000/g) that it would only be considered as a specialty product until roll-to-roll and exfoliation processes were developed. The potential of quantum computing, construction composites, and policy-driven commercialization was analyzed and weighed against the success of earlier pilot efforts in light of scale, dispersion, and regulatory challenges. The reflective review identifies delays in the scope refinements, publication delays, and a lack of interpretive opportunities in the socio-economic dimensions, and suggests more concerted initial scope, a living log of research alerts, and time-blocking in future projects. The results indicate that graphene has the potential to transform certain high-value industries indeed, but that its more general industrial influence remains dependent upon the successful resolution of basic materials-engineering, manufacturing, and policy issues.