The Graphene, Graphite and Carbon Nanotube Research Board

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Graphene Can Stop a Speeding Bullet
Nov 29, 2014 11:15 AM ET // by Tracy Staedter

http://news.discovery.com/tech/graphene-can-stop-a-speeding-bullet-141129.htm

At a miniature firing range, scientists shot tiny bullets into a sheet of carbon atoms to test its strength. The results could lead to heavy-duty but lightweight armor that protects humans from projectiles.

Until now, researchers knew that a sheet of carbon atoms, known as graphene, was super strong. But they hadn’t test just how strong.

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So, materials scientist Edwin Thomas and Jae-Hwang Lee, now an assistant professor at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, decided to experiment.

The set up a miniature firing range comprised of a laser — used to vaporize gold filaments for gunpowder — micron-sized glass bullets and stacked sheets of graphene for targets. When fired, the bullets flew through the air at 6,700 mph (about a third of the speed of a real bullet).

Upon impact, the sheets of graphene absorbed twice as much impact as Kevlar, the material commonly used in bullet-proof vests, and did tens time better than steel.

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Because graphene is so thin and so lightweight, it could be scaled up and embedded in human-sized bullet-proof vests worn by law enforcement or military personnel.

Scientists still haven’t figured out how to make large-scale sheets of graphene, but many are working to make that happen.

Credit: Jae-Hwang Lee