Graphite -- An Important Role in the Electric Vehicle Revolution

Graphite, a little-known component of lithium-ion batteries, is booming thanks to a global push for fossil fuels and a commitment to clean energy.

In December 2017, French President Emmanuel Macron announced a groundbreaking but largely symbolic commitment tospecial climate change: all oil drilling licenses in France and its territories It will not be renewed by 2040 and no license will be issued. France is not a major player in the fossil fuel market, but it means that more polluters are required to do the same.

Global warming will hit the countries of the global South hardest, with droughts in the Philippines and famine in India in the coming years. Green energy is soaring to fill the vacuum of oil and gas as fossil fuels are increasingly scrutinized and installed internationally.

At the end of 2017, Bloomberg News reported that one of the six new cars to be sold by 2025 will become an electric car, and industry giant China will provide a large amount of government subsidies through electric cars to reduce carbon emissions as a way to curb climate change.

It is here that graphite producers hope to gradually curb climate change-related effects by helping to create batteries for pollution-free vehicles. "Demand for graphite will increase dramatically over the next few years as the trend for electric vehicles grows exponentially," said Thomas Yingling, chief executive of Berkwoods Resources (TSXV: BKR) "

International commitments to electric vehicles

Federal governments around the world have been setting up bans on gas and diesel-powered vehicles, boosting demand for electric vehicles. In addition to the French statement, there are other countries that have taken a position on reducing the impact of automobiles on the environment. In the United Kingdom, for example, the Government's goal is to meet the Paris Agreement target of achieving zero emissions for all vehicles by 2050. Meanwhile, in Norway, it is expected that all new passenger vehicles and trucks sold after 2025 will become electric vehicles.

These rules are not specific to the "Western world." Industry giant China is now working to meet its target of 12 kms of new electric vehicles for all vehicles by 2020. At the same time, it has developed an electric vehicle policy for all vehicles sold by 2030.

The trend towards implementing environmental policies related to automobiles is increasing, with countries across continents setting official targets for EV sales. Such a mandate would continue to generate demand in the electric vehicle market and have a significant impact on the demand for materials used in batteries, including graphite.

The Role of Graphite in Electric Vehicle Revolution

Lithium is one of the most famous champions of the electric car revolution, and its batteries provide a nickname for electric cars. But graphite is a little-known and vital component in lithium-ion batteries. In fact, lithium-ion batteries require more graphite than lithium, and some estimates reach 10 to 20 times. Yilongmasike said the name of the battery is more like nickel-graphite because the lithium battery assembly only accounts for 2 inches of the finished battery.

These innovations mean that alternative power sources such as nickel-cadmium batteries have been phased out due to excellent lithium ion technology. Lithium-ion batteries are lighter, keep charging longer at extreme temperatures, and perform better in the case of nickel-cadmium competitors.

In these increasingly popular batteries, graphite forms a negative electrode called an anode. Lithium ions are sent from the anode to the cathode by separating their electrolyte buffers. Once this process is reversed, the result is the current of a vehicle such as TeslaModels. The advantages of using graphite as an electrode lie in its richness and the cyclic life of the material.

The use of graphite as a rechargeable battery component is mainly due to its versatility. At the atomic level, graphite is arranged in a honeycomb structure, providing conductivity-graphite is the only non-metallic material with this function-flexible, so it is very suitable for electric vehicles.

However, not all graphite can be used as an anode. Main types of graphite sheet, amorphous, venous and synthetic. Under the microscope, scaly graphite is flat and plate-like, with angular or hexagonal edges. The flake graphite can be further subdivided into small pieces, medium pieces, large pieces or giant pieces. According to Yingling, "It is a large piece of graphite that is the correct grade for battery development. Small pieces of graphite can not be used. "

Most of the world's graphite comes from China, and India and Brazil rank second and third in graphite production. However, other resources such as the LacGuéret project in Berkwood, Quebec, are still being identified. According to Yingling, Berkwood hopes to use the correct grade and large amounts of graphite required for batteries in its project like its neighbor Mason Graphite (TSXV: LLG).

The material is mined through open or underground mining and is present in Metamorphic rocks such as limestone. Although the size of the flakes required may vary from industry to industry, purity is crucial: the higher the purity of the graphite, the less processing required. Due to its potential as an anode for lithium-ion batteries, large scale graphite is causing significant market interest.

Mega-systems and others

According to government regulations and innovations in the battery sector, Tesla's proposed 10 gigabytes of lithium-ion batteries could be as high as 112 a year, according to Benchmark Mining Intelligence and three other large companies, to address the increase in demand for electric vehicles. 500 tons of flake graphite is expected to compete with Tesla for market share by 2020.

The goal of these plants is to use the advantages of lithium-ion batteries for nickel-cadmium competitors and to meet the needs of emerging markets. Tesla's Gigabit plant is expected to produce 35 gigawatts of lithium-ion batteries a year by 2018, almost matching global production. In addition, GrandView Research said the market is expected to reach $93.1 billion by 2025, thanks in part to electric vehicles, portable electronic devices and grid storage systems.

The application of graphite also surpasses transmission technology. Fuel cells capable of supplying electricity on a commercial scale convert chemical energy such as hydrogen into electrical energy and require more graphite than lithium ion batteries, and pebble bedspecial reactors require fist-sized graphite balls to contain their uranium.

North American Graphite Resources

Since flaky graphite is the fastest growing area of the global graphite market, companies such as GrapheOneResources (Toronto Stock Exchange code: GPH) are positioned to take advantage of newly discovered global graphite requirements. After determining Alaskan's large graphite resources, GrapheOne announced the results of research on large, high-purity graphite to meet the requirements of battery production.

Developing its LacGuéret extension project, BerkwoodResources is also working to provide a growing demand for graphite. According to recent information, the drilling at the property revealed a large sample of coarse grains of 37.68 <UNK> at a height of 27.11 meters.

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