Sustainable Graphite For Powder Metallurgy

Authors: Raffaele Gilardi (Imerys Graphite & Carbon, Switzerland) Michal Gulas (Imerys Graphite & Carbon, Switzerland) Flavie Delort (Imerys Graphite & Carbon, France) Abstract: Graphite is a critical alloying element in powder metallurgy. Even in small amounts (0.5-1% addition to the powder mix), it is vital for creating high-performance sintered components.Graphite is available in natural and synthetic forms, each having distinct production processes and environmental footprints (CO2 and water consumption) influenced by raw materials, manufacturing methods and location.This study examines various graphite types, including natural and synthetic options, within iron-copper-graphite PM compositions (MPIF FC-0208). We assessed their performance characteristics alongside their environmental footprints. A key aspect of this research was exploring sustainable, renewable alternatives to coke for synthetic graphite production.The results demonstrate that synthetic graphite synthesized from biomass residues (recently commercialized by Imerys as SU-NERGY™) achieves performance comparable to conventional coke-based synthetic graphite and is superior to natural graphite. This innovative biomass-derived synthetic graphite provides a sustainable solution for developing advanced powder metallurgy components, thus supporting the industry’s defossilization efforts. DOI: https://doi.org/10.59499/EP267156677