Natural flake graphite has become the dominant material for lithium-ion anodes as synthetic graphite’s market share dwindles.
Manufacturers have historically used the more expensive synthetic option because of its consistency, but natural flake’s popularity is growing in the industry due to its intercalation effect.
Currently natural graphite accounts for 60-65% of the market share, with synthetic having around 30% and alternatives such as lithium titante, silicon and tin having around 5%.
Flake graphite is used in most rechargeable lithium-ion batteries as the anode, with less than 10% of other materials used.
Current demand for battery-grade natural graphite is around 48,000 tonnes per annum (TPA). With some analysts predicting demand could rise as much as 200% in the next four years.
And while secondary lithium-ion batteries remain the rechargeable battery technology of choice, natural flake producers like Alabama Graphite (AG) will flourish.
Donald Baxter, president, chief executive officer and executive director of AG, told BBB: “The bottom line is the battery industry is going to be tremendous for us.
“Synthetic graphite is porous, with lots of nooks and crannies for impurities to get in and build up, and eventually affect the capacity of the battery.
“Natural flake graphite is the dominant material of choice as the anode in a lithium-ion battery because of the intercalation effect. Graphite anodes have a very low expansion and it is important to note that all other potential substitution anode materials (e.g. silicon, tin, etc.) expand considerably, by many 100s of percent.”
He added that right now the graphite anode could out perform the cathode, saying he believed any improvements to battery technology would have to come from the cathode side.
Sign up to our magazine now to read an in depth investigation into the global graphite industry in our next issue, out January 2017.
