Issue link: https://htpgraphics.uberflip.com/i/435716
10 UMIC ® UMIP ® UMI 3 Morgan Advanced Materials has announced a new joint development agreement with the University, aimed at scaling up a new process for manufacturing graphene – a one-atom thick carbon allotrope first isolated at the University ten years ago and for which two Nobel Prizes were awarded. The world's thinnest material and a potent conductor, graphene is also extremely lightweight, chemically inert and has a large surface area which means, with further research and testing, it could change the way we think about electrical and chemical engineering. Bringing together some of the University's leading graphene researchers and Morgan's 150 years of carbon processing expertise, the partnership will explore the full potential of graphene, with a particular interest in understanding and optimising the relationship between the manufacturing process and materials science. The partnership has been established to improve the prospects of bringing this material to commercial reality. Morgan initially began work with the University in early 2010 on a number of Government- funded materials and related programmes, and the joint graphene development agreement represents the next stage in this relationship. Dr Mike Murray, Chief Technology Officer of Morgan Advanced Materials commented: "With decades of expertise in developing specialist carbon- based materials, Morgan's material scientists will be based full time at the University, working closely with academic colleagues to understand the manufacturing mechanism and properties of graphene, helping us explore the applications where the technology can be used for optimum benefit." Clive Rowland, UMI 3 CEO added: "To explore and fully exploit the properties of graphene, commercial partnerships are vital. I am very pleased with our collaboration with Morgan, which is based around an intellectual property project that we have taken to the proof-of- principle stage. We have consistently said that joining forces with world-class companies like Morgan Advanced Materials and tapping into such engineering and industrial experience will help us realise the full potential of the material and greatly assist us in overcoming the myriad challenges of taking an entirely new material from the laboratory all the way through to the manufacturing stage and ultimately to market adoption of industrial products and perhaps consumer products in due course." For more information on graphene visit www.graphene.manchester.ac.uk THE UNIVERSITY PARTNERS WITH MORGAN ADVANCED MATERIALS FOR GRAPHENE IP DEVELOPMENT Academics at the University have developed a new iteration of PAMPA (Parallel Artificial Membrane Permeability Assay) technology, that has the potential to help pharmaceutical companies bring new drugs to market faster and at a significantly reduced cost. Deriving from the School of Chemistry and funded by its Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Knowledge Transfer Account (KTA), the novel system has been licensed to scientific tool and consumables manufacturer, Asynt Ltd, by UMIP. It builds upon existing technology to better-mimic the mechanism of drug permeation across human intestinal wall cells. By applying rotation, hydrodynamic control and in- situ measurement of drug permeation during processing – the new PAMPA system enables analyses to be conducted at a much faster rate. When utilising the older PAMPA technology, researchers typically have to wait several hours for results and often have to leave the system running overnight. However, the new technique can produce results in as little as 20 minutes. Similarly, the use of the organic membrane provides an attractive alternative to testing on animal cells and delivers more accurate results than the original technology, which has remained largely unchanged since the late 1990s. Its speed, accuracy and scalability means that the system has the potential to reduce the number of later-stage failures and cut attrition rates among potential drugs and its unique setup enables users to analyse permeability in real-time. While the initial focus of the project is on improving the application of PAMPA technology within the pharmaceutical sector, the ability to change the composition of the membrane means there are numerous potential applications far beyond drug discovery and development. ASYNT UNVEILS NEW PAMPA TECHNOLOGY LATEST UMIP LICENSING NEWS