Graphene is added to protective coatings for one physical reason: a flat, impermeable platelet lying parallel to the substrate forces water and ions to travel around it rather than through it. The effect is geometric, and that has a practical consequence most datasheets skip — the flake dimensions decide whether you get the effect at all.
The barrier effect comes from tortuosity: the longer the detour a water molecule has to take, the slower the coating fails. Detour length scales with how wide each platelet is relative to how thick it is. A large, thin, well-aligned flake creates a long detour. A thick, small, randomly oriented particle creates almost none — it is just filler.
This is why “contains graphene” on a datasheet means very little on its own, and why we publish the dimensions:
| Number of layers | 5–8 — genuinely few-layer, not graphite platelets |
|---|---|
| Lateral size | 3–6 µm |
| BET surface area | 500–700 m²/g |
| Raman characterisation | D 1348.6 · G 1578.5 · 2D 2713.2 cm⁻¹, with SEM supplied |
| Carrier | Waterborne acrylic, graphene 5% / resin 22.5%, pH 6–8, RoHS |
An aspect ratio in the region of a few micrometres across and a handful of atomic layers thick is what makes the tortuous-path argument physically real rather than a marketing sentence.
This is worth saying plainly, because the graphene market has a reputation problem. A large fraction of material sold as graphene is fine graphite. Three checks separate them:
Three independent checks, all of which we support with documents: the Raman spectrum (D, G and 2D bands at 1348.6, 1578.5 and 2713.2 cm⁻¹), the BET surface area at 500–700 m²/g, which graphite does not reach, and an SEM image of the flakes. Layer count is specified at 5–8.
The concentrate is specified at 40–100% dosage and is designed to be diluted with clean water to the concentration you need. The right level for a barrier coating is something you establish in trial, because it interacts with your pigment volume concentration.
Yes. It is a black liquid and graphene is black. For anticorrosion primers that is usually irrelevant; for topcoats it is a real constraint.
It is a waterborne system intended to be diluted and sprayed or used for impregnation. Compatibility with your existing line should be trialled.
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