Energeia Graphenemex® is a pioneering nanotechnology company in Latin America, focused on the research and production of graphene materials, as well as the development of applications at an industrial level.

Through their research and development protocols, the company seeks to solve problems that other companies or industries face in their day to day, for which research agreements or alliances are made to develop a solution in which graphene becomes the changing agent.

WHY WAS GRAPHENERGY INK CREATED

In 2019, Graphenemex® approached one of the largest steel tube-making companies in the world that was facing a serious problem in the process of marking their tubes.

During the tube manufacturing process, marking is necessary for rapid identification and traceability, optimizing all procedures that each of the steel tubes must go through.

However, there was a problem: the ink used in for marking them erased very easily and did not withstand application temperatures above 70°C, in addition to having low resistance to abrasion.

In the course of manufacturing steel tubes, it is normal for these tubes to be subjected to different processes; rotation on conveyors, rollers, shot blasting and transport with cranes, where there is high friction and abrasion between tubes, so the ink ended up being torn off, erasing the marking on the metal surface, and thus losing all control and traceability of the tubes.

To offer a comprehensive solution to the marking problem, Energeia Graphenemex®, through its Graphenergy Anticorrosive line, developed a new white marking ink with graphene oxide.

Among the most important features of this newly developed graphene oxide marking ink are:

-Extraordinary thermal resistance (resists more than 200 °C)

-UV resistance

-Anticorrosive properties

-High adhesion to metal substrates

-Abrasion resistance

-Ultra fast drying (3 seconds)

-Excellent covering power

THERMAL RESISTANCE AT EXTREME TEMPERATURES

Thanks to the development of the marking ink, not only was the lack of adherence problem solved, but also the issue of abrasion that occurs when moving the tubes during transport, thus maintaining the traceability of the tubes.

Due to its characteristics, the production process was additionally benefited by this properties:

-Ultra-fast drying: it allowed the production line to be uninterrupted, which could improve production times.

-Anticorrosive protection: a version of the transparent ink was formulated and  is now applied to the tubes after marking, preventing them from rusting.