Universal Matter

Universal Matter is a materials technology company established in 2019 to commercialize Flash Joule Heating research from Rice University, with operations in Burlington, Ontario, Houston, Texas, and Redcar, UK. The company addresses the high cost, energy use and emissions of conventional graphene production by converting waste carbon feedstocks into graphene in milliseconds.

Universal Matter’s Flash Graphene process applies a rapid electrical pulse to carbon-containing waste, such as scrap tyres, biochar or plastics, to produce turbostratic graphene without solvents or high-temperature furnaces. The graphene is supplied to manufacturers of asphalt, cement, rubber, coatings and composites to improve durability and reduce material consumption.

1. Flash Joule Heating: millisecond electrical pulse converts carbon waste directly into graphene.

2. Waste-derived feedstock: uses scrap tyres, biochar and plastics instead of mined graphite.

3. Solvent-free process: eliminates chemical solvents and high-temperature furnaces used in legacy methods.

4. Infrastructure applications: graphene additive tested to extend asphalt road lifespan.

5. Multi-sector supply: products formulated for cement, rubber, coatings and composite manufacturers.

6. Multi-site operations: production and R&D across Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom.