Apparatus and method for bulk production of atomically thin 2-dimensional materials including graphene

An apparatus for the production of Graphene and similar atomic scale laminar materials by the delamination of a bulk laminar material;

• the apparatus comprising:
• a main pump (112), suitable for pumping a fluid, the fluid being a suspension of solid particles of the bulk laminar material, at a pressure of greater than 1 MPa, in a first direction and along a principle axis towards and in fluid communication with;
• core components (10), the core components comprising:
• a fluid conduit (12) defining a principal axis along which the fluid is pumpable and suitable for conveying said fluid, wherein the fluid conduit is arranged to direct fluid at said pressure from that conduit against;
• an impact head (16) having an impact face (28) perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to said principal axis and so produce a resultant first force in the first direction;
• the impact head and the conduit being arranged so that a variable, preferably annular, gap (20) of between 500 μm and 1 μm results between an end (24) of the conduit proximate to the impact head and the impact head wherein the gap forms a continuous region surrounding the end of the conduit and being substantially coplanar with the impact head;
• and
• an impact head surround (26) which extends the region in which the fluid is constrained before exiting the core components wherein,
• the apparatus is configured to bias the impact head in a second direction in direct opposition to the fluid in the first direction and to do so with a second force and
• the impact head (16) of the apparatus is configured so as to be movable along the principal axis relative to the proximal end (24) of the conduit so as to vary the gap (20) and wherein
• that movement is a result of the magnitude of first force in opposition to the second force, the second force being the result of a pneumatic pressure directly or indirectly in opposition to the first force exerted on the impact head along the principle axis.