Malaysian-based materials technology company Graphjet Technology has entered into a collaboration with the Centre for Materials Engineering and Smart Manufacturing (MERCU) at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM). This follows a letter of intent from UKM under the Consortium of Research Excellence (KKP) 2025, supported by Malaysia’s Ministry of Higher Education. The partnership will focus on applying graphite and graphene in additive manufacturing technologies to develop advanced heat sinks.
To support this initiative, Graphjet has also completed the establishment of a new laboratory, expanding its in-house capabilities to conduct quality testing and research on its graphite and graphene products. This facility reduces reliance on third-party testing providers, shortens turnaround times in its development programs, and will play a central role in the company’s collaboration with UKM.
Graphjet Expands Testing Capabilities to Capitalize on Regional Growth
Graphjet explained that Malaysia and the Southeast Asia region are experiencing rapid growth in the data center sector, with major players such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, Google Cloud, Alibaba Cloud, Equinix, and NTT either establishing or expanding operations in the region. This growth is supported by strategic location advantages, strong connectivity, and favorable government policies.
“This development will benefit from the surging demand for specialised chip, especially AI chips which will demand for more efficient and effective cooling solutions. By focusing on additive manufacturing technology, the development would allow improvements to existing deployed heat sinks used whilst developing new advance heat sinks for new facilities, especially for new and existing data centers,” said Chris Lai, CEO of Graphjet.
Broader Industry Advances
While Graphjet’s efforts highlight the role of graphene and graphite in advancing cooling solutions for data centers, similar innovations are unfolding worldwide, demonstrating the versatility of these materials across industries.
In May, Lyten, a San Jose-based materials company, announced the launch of Lyten Motorsports, a new venture focused on supplying the racing industry with parts made from its proprietary 3D Graphene supermaterials. The initiative aims to deliver lighter, stronger, and more sustainable components to motorsports applications, and is headquartered in Indiana, in collaboration with long-time racing supplier INDYCAR Experience.
Meanwhile, advances in graphite 3D printing are emerging from Rice University, where researchers have developed a new method of fabricating complex graphite structures using direct ink writing (DIW) 3D printing. Previous attempts to 3D print with graphite have usually involved integrating a powdered form of the material into a polymer matrix. Using extrusion-based technologies, it’s then possible to create mechanically sound structures, but the resulting composites often only comprise less than 50% graphite by weight. As such, 3D printed graphite parts until now haven’t really offered the thermal and electrical properties that make pure graphite so desirable. To tackle the problem, the Rice researchers developed a colloidal 3D printable ink made of graphite powder and miniscule amounts of clay, achieving complex DIW parts with up to 97% purity.
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Featured image show Graphjet Technology’s advancements in graphite-based technologies. Photo via Graphjet.
