China has unveiled plans to restrict exports of graphite—a mineral crucial to the manufacture of batteries for electric vehicles (EVs)—on national security grounds.
Graphite 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.
It is formed by the metamorphosis of sediments containing carbonaceous material.
It is a naturally occurring form of crystalline 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.
