Graphite

Table of Contents☰

About Graphite

It is an opaque, non-metallic carbon polymorph that is blackish silver in colour and metallic to dull in sheen.
Since it resembles metal lead, it is also known colloquially as black lead or plumbago.
Formation: It is formed by the metamorphosis of sediments containing carbonaceous material.
Molecular structure
- It consists of a ring of six carbon atoms closely bonded together hexagonally in widely spaced layers.
- The bonds within the layers are strong, but the bonds between the layers are less in number and therefore weaker.
Properties:
- It is a naturally occurring form of crystalline carbon and is a stable form of carbon.
- It is extremely soft, cleaves with very light pressure, and has a very low specific gravity.
- In contrast, it is extremely resistant to heat and nearly inert in contact with almost any other material. These extreme properties give it a wide range of uses in metallurgy and manufacturing.
Applications: It is used in pencils, lubricants, crucibles, foundry facings, polishes, arc lamps, batteries, brushes for electric motors, and cores of nuclear reactors.
Globally it is mined extensively in China, India, Brazil, North Korea, and Canada.
Why Sri Lankan Graphite? Sri Lankan graphite is considered among the purest in the world with more than 98% carbon content.

Q1: What is Graphene?

It is a one-atom-thick layer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal lattice. It is the building-block of Graphite (which is used, among others things, in pencil tips).

Source: India in talks with Sri Lanka to acquire graphite mine block