Chapter 67: The New Material: Carbon Crystal
Chapter 67: The New Material: Carbon Crystal
“Ink Girl, report the current temperature.”
“Temperature is 1408K.”
“Now increase pressure to 1468.25 KPa. Keep the temperature constant. Don’t increase too fast.”
Inside the laboratory, Chen Mo stared calmly at the instrument before him. Ten days had passed since Li Chengzhi came to discuss a deal. After constant experimentation and failures during this period, the most critical moment had finally arrived.
The temperature needed to rise by 5 degrees Celsius, the pressure increase required 152 KPa, and the pressurization time needed an extra 3 seconds. This data was the final result he obtained after ten days and over a hundred failures.
Watching the countdown on the nearby computer, Chen Mo felt his heart tense. The lab fell quiet, filled only by the sound of the running instruments. Three and a half minutes wasn’t long, but to Chen Mo, it felt like an eternity.
Only when the instrument stopped running after completing its preset time did Chen Mo snap out of it. Slowly, he opened the reaction chamber of the instrument.
Familiar carbon crystal sheets. Chen Mo took them out, piece by piece. These Carbon Crystal pieces varied in size like shreds of paper piled together. Though only a millimeter thick, they weren’t brittle; they were almost like hard paperboard, eliminating the worry of them turning to powder with a careless touch.
Tiny, countless sparkling dots mingled on the small Carbon Crystal pieces, resembling the starry night sky and looking beautiful and dreamy.
They didn’t look much different from the carbon crystal sheets from previous experiments. But the main difference was purity, impossible to discern with the naked eye.
Placing the Carbon Crystal into the testing instrument, Chen Mo began to wait. Not long after, the machine beeped, signaling the test was complete.
“Purity: 82%.”
Seeing the data displayed on the instrument, Chen Mo smiled. Going from 79% to 82%, they had finally hit the 80% target. This purity was sufficient as raw material for batteries.
Chen Mo picked up a Carbon Crystal piece about the size of a small cracker and held it up to the light, examining it carefully. This material was the new battery material they had developed.
The completion of the Carbon Crystal was just like finishing a super container. Next came the lithium-ion intercalation process. Lithium ions had the ability to intercalate into graphite, a process that was fast, reversible, and not nearly as troublesome as synthesizing Carbon Crystal.
Successful lithium-ion intercalation into the Carbon Crystal would create a true carbon crystal base.
Chen Mo didn’t continue the experiments. The Carbon Crystal synthesis was done for the day. The subsequent steps were much simpler; there was no need to rush.
“Ink Girl, record the data for the Carbon Crystal synthesis conditions,” Chen Mo said after thinking for a moment.
“Okay, Brother Mo,” Ink Girl’s young voice fell silent. After a while, it came back: “Brother Mo, data recording complete.”
“Organize the technical documentation for the Carbon Crystal Material and save it to the database,” Chen Mo instructed.
“Okay.”
After letting Ink Girl handle the compilation, Chen Mo started tidying up the instruments on the lab bench. Only after everything was sorted did he leave the laboratory and head back towards his office.
The next thing he needed to do was acquire new technology.
A month had passed unnoticed. The Novice level permission allowed one random tech draw per month, and today exactly marked one month. Though these random draws could be frustrating, he still had to take his chance.
Back in his office, Chen Mo lay directly on the sofa, closed his eyes, and entered the Science and Technology Library.
It still held that familiar essence. After glancing around the library, Chen Mo opened the dark red book on the table. As soon as the book opened, Elder Shu appeared within the library.
“You’ve come,” Elder Shu nodded at Chen Mo. “Looking to acquire technology? You have one random selection right.”
“Use it.”
Chen Mo wiped his face, silently praying not to get something useless this time. Otherwise, he might develop a genuine psychological aversion to the random selection option.
Elder Shu pointed his finger, and densely packed books rapidly materialized in the library, then slowly began to spin.
The number of books dwindled down. Chen Mo stared intently at the ones floating in the air.
The final book landed in Elder Shu’s hand. Chen Mo focused his gaze, and his expression instantly fell.
Pregnancy Test Kit Production Technology
Seeing this technology, Chen Mo nearly spat out blood. He covered his face and squatted down on the ground. He was seriously questioning his life choices and was utterly convinced now that the random draw was a cruel joke. This was worse than the breast enhancement formula or the Aphrodisiac.
“Elder Shu, please tell me the truth,” Chen Mo said pitifully. “Does this random selection ever offer anything not awful?”
“It does, but there are simply too many possible technologies, and your luck is… unique,” Elder Shu replied, laughing heartily.
“Alright, fine. Just my luck,” Chen Mo said, his face sullen.
Elder Shu chuckled and tapped the book onto Chen Mo’s head. He then looked at Chen Mo. “You still need to assimilate over 430 more books to complete the 1000-book task. Finishing sooner and reaching the next level will be far more beneficial to you.”
“Hmm,” Chen Mo nodded. “What permissions does the next level offer?”
“You’ll find out when the time comes,” Elder Shu answered cryptically.
Emerging from the Science and Technology Library, Chen Mo felt utterly glum. This time he had essentially come away empty-handed. That damn random selection had tricked him into getting hopeful for nothing.
But he decided it didn’t matter so much. He still had plenty of his current technologies sitting unused. He wasn’t even in the medical field yet; he had more than he could handle. He definitely couldn’t launch several technologies all at once either.
After leaving the library, Chen Mo picked up a book and began reading quietly.
A rare moment of free time was perfect for reading.
“Brother Mo.”
Chen Mo was immersed in his book when Ink Girl’s young voice interrupted him. “Zhao Min and Xiaoyu have come in with a man.”
Not long after, Zhao Min entered, leading a sturdy man.
“Chairman,” Zhao Min announced. “This is the most outstanding candidate selected from the personnel recommended by Mr. Li. Wang Hai. He is a retired special forces soldier. He will be your dedicated driver and bodyguard from now on.”
“Hello, Chairman,” Wang Hai greeted Chen Mo.
Wang Hai glanced at Chen Mo, his face expressionless, though a flicker of surprise was hidden in his eyes. He hadn’t expected the Chairman of Legion Ant Company, the newly risen tech giant domestically, to be so young.
“Hello,” Chen Mo also sized up Wang Hai and gave a slight nod.
Wang Hai had a crew-cut, short black hair, dark-toned skin, and stood at about 1.75 meters tall – not particularly tall. His appearance was ordinary, the kind you could easily lose in a crowd.
No military aura seemed to emanate from him. But Chen Mo wasn’t one to judge character based on appearance anyway; he didn’t dwell on it.
“You two may leave. I need to discuss some matters with the Chairman,” Zhao Min instructed the other two.
After the driver and Wang Hai left, Zhao Min turned to Chen Mo. “Chairman, the city’s notification has come through. Our company is exempt from taxes for one year, and the second year, the tax is reduced by half.”
Chen Mo nodded. “Not bad.” He knew getting two full years exempt would have been much harder; this was already a significant concession.
“Let’s discuss the new material. Are the production equipment I asked you to buy prepared? I will need to conduct mass production experiments soon.”
Chen Mo’s expression turned serious. The Carbon Crystal lab phase was complete; the next essential step was mass production experimentation. Remaining only at the lab stage wouldn’t be useful to them at all.
“They were prepared long ago. The equipment has been sitting in the factory workshop. Has the new material succeeded?” Zhao Min looked at Chen Mo in surprise.
“The lab phase succeeded today. Have people prepare the raw materials. We’ll conduct the mass production experiment in three days,” Chen Mo declared.
“Understood.”