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Identification Graphite occurs naturally between layers of coal. It took many thousands of years for coal to form from peat under high temperatures and pressure. Graphite forms in the areas where temperatures are higher and pressure is greater, which forces the impurities from coal. Just like coal, graphite is not a renewable resource because it takes a long time for it to form. Types Not every coal bed has the conditions for graphite formation. Unlike coal, natural graphite is rare and expensive to mine. Synthetic graphite is cheaper to produce by applying high temperatures to amorphous carbon. The synthetic form is slightly different from natural graphite, but it carries the same physical properties. Geography Natural graphite mines are located in Canada, Ukraine, Brazil, India, North Korea, South Korea and Mexico.

Crystalline Structure Graphite occurs naturally as flakes and veins within rock fractures or as amorphous lumps. The basic crystalline structure of graphite is a flat sheet of strongly bonded carbon atoms in hexagonal cells. Called graphenes, these sheets stack above each other to create volume, but the vertical bonds between the sheets are very weak. The weakness of these vertical bonds enables the sheets to cleave and slide over one another. However, if a graphene sheet is aligned and rolled horizontally, the resultant material is 100 times stronger than steel. Writing and Artists' Materials [Lead" pencil cores are made of a mixture of clay and graphite. Loosely cleaved graphite flakes mark the paper, and the clay acts as a binding material. The higher the graphite content of the core, the softer the pencil and the darker its trace. There is no lead in what are known as lead pencils. The name originated in Europe when graphite was called [plumbago" or [black lead" because of its metallic appearance. Graphite`s use as a marker dates from the 16th century in northern England, where local legend states that shepherds used a newly discovered graphite deposit to mark sheep. Lubricants and Refractories Graphite reacts with atmospheric water vapor to deposit a thin film over any adjacent surfaces and reduces the friction between them. It forms a suspension in oil and lowers friction between two moving parts. Graphite works in this way as a lubricant up to a temperature of 787 degrees Celsius (1,450 degrees Fahrenheit) and as an anti-seize material at up to 1,315 degrees Celsius (2,399 degrees Fahrenheit). Graphite is a common refractory material because it withstands high temperatures without changing chemically. It is used in manufacturing processes ranging from steel and glass making to iron processing. It is also an asbestos substitute in automobile brake linings. Lithium-Ion Batteries Lithium-ion batteries have a lithium cathode and a graphite anode. As the battery charges, positively charged lithium ions in the electrolyte-a lithium salt solution-accumulate around the graphite anode. A lithium anode would make a more powerful battery, but lithium expands considerably when charged. Over time, the lithium cathode`s surface becomes cracked, causing lithium ions to escape. These in turn form growths called dendrites in a process that can short circuit the battery.

Graphite , archaically referred to as Plumbago, is a crystalline form of carbon, a semimetal, a native element mineral, and one of the allotropes of carbon. Graphite is the most stable form of carbon under standard conditions. Therefore, it is used in thermochemistry as the standard state for defining the heat of formation of carbon compounds. Graphite may be considered the highest grade of coal, just above anthracite and alternatively called meta-anthracite, although it is not normally used as fuel because it is difficult to ignite. Types and varieties There are three principal types of natural graphite, each occurring in different types of ore deposit: Crystalline flake graphite (or flake graphite for short) occurs as isolated, flat, plate-like particles with hexagonal edges if unbroken and when broken the edges can be irregular or angular; Amorphous graphite: very fine flake graphite is sometimes called amorphous in the trade; Lump graphite (also called vein graphite) occurs in fissure veins or fractures and appears as massive platy intergrowths of fibrous or acicular crystalline aggregates, and is probably hydrothermal in origin. Highly ordered pyrolytic graphite or more correctly highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) refers to graphite with an angular spread between the graphite sheets of less than 1°. The name "graphite fiber" is also sometimes used to refer to carbon fiber or carbon fiber-reinforced polymer. Article From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graphite

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