The graphene commercialization maturity journey

Human history has been defined by the dominant materials in use at that time, from the stone age until the age of silicon. As new, disruptive materials have been either discovered or developed, they have had to earn their place in society. Graphene and other new nanomaterials are no different. The graphene commercialization maturity journey is a review of the different stages of development that virtually all new materials have had to navigate on the road to commercial viability. The paper also identifies and reviews a common set of obstacles that must be addressed, any one of which can be a cause of failure for a material to become a commercial success. In this paper we define the stages of development, the associated challenges, and how they evolve over time. We have also provided examples for comparison and to illustrate the point. This framework will help assess graphene’s current position in its journey toward commercialization and can be applied to any of the many new advanced 2D nanomaterials that are currently at the early stages of development.