Introduction to artificial graphite

Synthetic graphite is similar to polycrystals in crystallography.

In a broad sense, all graphite materials obtained by carbonization of organic matter and then graphitized high temperature treatment can be collectively referred to as artificial graphite, such as carbon (graphite) fiber, pyrolytic carbon (graphite), foam graphite, etc.

In the narrow sense, artificial graphite usually refers to the bulk solid materials produced by batching, kneading, molding, carbonization (known as roasting in industry) and graphitization processes, such as graphite electrodes, isostatic graphite, etc., with low impurity content of carbon raw materials (petroleum coke, asphalt coke, etc.) as aggregate and coal pitch as binder.

There are many forms of artificial graphite, both powder, fiber and block, and the narrow sense of artificial graphite is usually block, and it needs to be processed into a certain shape when used. It can be regarded as a multiphase material, including the graphite phase transformed by carbon particles such as petroleum coke or asphalt coke, the graphite phase transformed by coal pitch binder coated around the particles, the particle accumulation or the pores formed after heat treatment of coal pitch binder. In general, the higher the heat treatment temperature, the higher the degree of graphitization. Industrial production of artificial graphite, the degree of graphitization is usually less than 90%.

Compared with natural graphite, artificial graphite has weak heat transfer and electrical conductivity, lubricity and plasticity, but artificial graphite also has better wear resistance, corrosion resistance and low permeability advantages than natural graphite.

The raw materials for producing artificial graphite mainly include petroleum coke, needle coke, asphalt coke, coal pitch, carbon microspheres, etc. Its downstream products mainly include graphite electrode, pre-baked anode, isostatic graphite, high purity graphite, nuclear graphite, heat exchanger and so on.