Empa, the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, celebrates 10 years of successful collaborative research in the Graphene Flagship.
The European Commission launched its largest research and innovation project to date in 2013—the Graphene Flagship. Spanning ten years, this flagship has provided funding to a consortium of more than 140 academic and industrial partners across 23 countries. The flagship aimed to exploit the potential of graphene and other two-dimensional (2D) materials, bringing them from the lab to the market and advancing the EU’s technological and industrial leadership. Its main objective is to boost Europe’s strategic autonomy and competitiveness in graphene-based technologies. According to the European Commission’s 10-year assessment, the Graphene Flagship created 20 spin-offs, which collectively raised €170 million in venture capital. Together with industrial partners, these spin-offs introduced more than 100 products to the market, demonstrating the commercial viability of graphene and related materials. Economically, the flagship generated €6 billion in industrial value and created over 80’000 jobs across Europe, cementing its legacy as a transformative force in materials research and innovation.
Empa, the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, played a crucial role in the success of the flagship. Several of Empa’s research teams were involved, receiving a total of CHF 3 million in direct funding and leveraging an additional CHF 6 million through follow-up projects. Empa’s work was instrumental in addressing some of the flagship’s most pressing research questions, including the safety and sustainability of graphene materials. Led by Prof. Dr. Peter Wick, the Nanomaterials in Health Lab focused on the interactions of nanomaterials, such as graphene, with human cells and organs. Their work paved the way for safer, non-critical material applications while investigating the long-term effects of graphene on health and the environment.
A unique feature of the Graphene Flagship was its unprecedented 10-year framework, extending well beyond the typical three-year duration of most research projects. This long-term approach allowed for phased progress, fostering collaboration among partners, identifying high-quality materials, scaling production, and exploring applications in health and technology. Empa’s contributions were particularly notable in addressing hazard assessment, lifecycle implications, studying what happens to graphene materials when they degrade, burn, or are otherwise disposed of. Empa’s team collaborated with international partners to integrate machine learning into their research. This approach enhanced the prediction of toxicity parameters and facilitated a shift from animal testing to more ethical and scalable alternative methods, setting a new standard for nanomaterials research. The insights gained from Empa’s decade-long collaboration extend beyond graphene, informing studies of other 2D materials such as graphene-related materials like Graphene oxide or Graphene acid or Mxene, and black phosphorous. These materials have potential applications in medical technologies, including nanoscale diagnostic tools and particle-based antibiotics, or as enhancers for radiation therapy. Empa’s involvement also laid the groundwork for continued collaboration in Europe. Empa is currently engaged in six Horizon Europe projects, which build on the outcomes of the Graphene Flagship initiative. These projects focus on advancing research in areas such as health and environmental sustainability, among others. Two examples are the collaborative projects MACRAME (2022–2025) and CHIASMA (2024–2027), which aim to support the transition to safe and sustainable materials by design processes.
To ensure the EU’s strategic autonomy in advanced materials in the future, the EU launched the EU Partnership Innovative Advanced Materials for Europe (IAM4EU), which brings together public and private stakeholders. The Advanced Materials 2030 Initiative (AMI2030), with Empa as a partner, plays a key role in supporting this partnership by using integrated assessment modelling to support climate and energy policy. This initiative aligns with IAM4EU’s mission to drive sustainable innovation in materials, helping Europe advance towards a circular economy and reducing environmental impacts. In conclusion, for Empa, the Graphene Flagship was not just a research initiative but also a platform for building long-term international partnerships. Trust and mutual respect developed over a decade of collaboration continue to drive innovation. As Prof. Dr. Wick reflected in our exchange, “The long-term collaboration under the Graphene Flagship enabled a level of productivity and mutual trust which was very special in research projects. The relationships we’ve built will continue to drive innovation for years to come.” Empa’s role in the Graphene Flagship exemplifies the potential of Swiss-EU collaboration in research and innovation. By bringing together international expertise and resources, the project not only achieved its ambitious goals but also paved the way for a new generation of applications and breakthroughs in advanced materials.