Led by a group affiliated with Trimaran Capital Partners, the series B also included R2M Investments.

Graphene Frontiers, developer of biological and chemical sensors, has closed its $1.6m series B round. It was led by a group affiliated with New York-based private equity firm Trimaran Capital Partners, who was joined by R2M Investments and previous investor Wemba 36 Angels.

Spun-out of Pennsylvania University in 2010, the company previously secured $745,000 in funding from the US National Science Foundation in the form of an SBIR Phase II grant. It used that cash injection to commercialise its manufacturing process, which is currently patent-pending.

The spin-out’s proprietary technology, chemical vapour deposition process and etch-free film transfer, makes the mass-production of graphene on a commercial scale possible. Graphene is made of a near-transparent sheet, a mere one atom thick,  and consists of pure carbon. It is 100 times stronger than steel, all while conducting heat and electricity better than any other material currently known. 

Graphene Frontiers uses the material’s properties to build its sensor technology, which can detect biological and chemical markers efficiently and cheaply. One of the planned applications is a biosensor ten times smaller than a postage stamp, which will allow healthcare professionals to diagnose diseases with higher speed and accuracy than has been previously possible.

Mike Patterson, chief executive at Graphene Frontiers, said: “This round of funding will ensure Graphene Frontier’s position as one of the leading graphene technology companies in the world. The investment will be utilized to hire additional PhD level researchers, expand laboratory facilities, and facilitate the development of Graphene Frontiers’ breakthrough, proprietary sensors and manufacturing process that supports mass production for industrial and commercial uses.”