Graphite Purity and Graphite Applications
As the world enters the carbon era, graphite’s unique physical characteristics provide it with tremendous industrial value. High-purity graphite is a vital raw material for advanced technological applications, such as foils & films, graphite composites, and special lubricants. Graphite is also an essential ingredient in the lithium-ion batteries that power modern devices such as smartphones/tablets/PCs. With improved efficiency and longer power back-ups, innovations in lithium ion battery technology are driving market growth across a variety of end-use industries.
While the price of graphite concentrate has come off its recent highs, some producers listed on western exchanges are sounding the alarm about an impending supply gap. However, unlike lithium, the majority of natural and synthetic graphite production is located in Asia, where the demand picture is more promising.
Graphite mines crush and grind ore to separate flakes, which typically have a purity of at least 94 percent. These flakes are then sorted by size to produce jumbo, large, medium and fine flake graphite, with each type having different applications. Graphite powders are used for crucibles, foundry facings, pencils (including the "lead" in common pencils), zinc-carbon batteries and other specialized applications.
To ensure future supply, buyers can consider long-term contracts with a diverse mix of suppliers. Ideally, these contracts should include established commodity aggregators as well as some mines and processing facilities. This will help ensure a consistent source of quality graphite even in times of tight supply. Buyers can also segment potential suppliers by geography and political risk. For example, new, vertically integrated suppliers in Turkey and Brazil are opening soon, and their expansion plans need to be taken into account.
