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Synthetic graphite commodity Critical Material

Manufactured crystalline graphite commodity produced industrially by high- temperature graphitization (~3,000 degrees C) of carbonaceous precursors such as calcined petroleum coke and coal-tar pitch. USGS 2021 Minerals Yearbook (Graphite chapter, printed pp. 32.1-32.16) and USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 (Graphite (Natural) chapter, printed pp. 92-93) distinguish synthetic graphite from natural flake, amorphous, and vein/lump graphite (cmmmech:natural-graphite and mineral species cmmmech:graphite) and track synthetic graphite across electric-arc-furnace electrodes, unmachined shapes, motor brushes, steelmaking carbon raisers, and lithium-ion battery active anode material (HTS 3801.10, 3801.20, 3801.90, 6903.10, and 8545.11). In the 2023 US Department of Energy Final Critical Materials List (88 FR 51792-51798), DOE evaluated 'Graphite (natural and synthetic)' and 'Graphite--synthetic' in Table 1 (p. 51796, where synthetic graphite alone was scored 'Not Critical' in both short and medium terms) while explicitly noting in Footnote 6 (p. 51796) that the 2022 DOI/USGS Final List of Critical Minerals defined 'graphite' to include both natural and synthetic graphite. This record captures the manufactured synthetic-graphite commodity and its explicit authority scope boundaries without asserting a standalone mineral species identity or microbial mechanism.

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Criticality Designations

Jurisdiction List Name Edition / Document Classification Source
United States Department of the Interior / USGS Final List of Critical Minerals (as scoped in 2023 DOE Final Notice Footnote 6) 2022/2023 scope for Graphite (natural and synthetic), 88 FR 51796 critical doe_2023_fr

Sources & References

  1. usgs_myb2021_graphite: US Geological Survey, 2021 Minerals Yearbook, Graphite [Advance Release], by Andrew A. Stewart, December 2024, pp. 32.1-32.17: synthetic graphite manufacturing from petroleum coke and coal-tar pitch near 3,000 degrees C (p. 32.2), domestic shipments by end use in Table 3 (p. 32.12; 259,000 t valued at $1.16 billion in 2021), trade statistics in Tables 1, 5, 7, and 8 (pp. 32.10-32.16), and battery anode material applications (pp. 32.3-32.5).
    https://pubs.usgs.gov/myb/vol1/2021/myb1-2021-graphite.pdf (accessed 2026-10-18)
  2. usgs_mcs2026_graphite: US Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026, Graphite (Natural), printed pp. 92-93 (chapter PDF pp. 1-2): imports of natural and synthetic graphite battery active anode material (AAM), antidumping/countervailing duty investigations, and competition of synthetic graphite powder and secondary synthetic graphite scrap in steelmaking and battery applications.
    https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2026/mcs2026-graphite.pdf (accessed 2026-10-18)
  3. doe_2023_fr: US Department of Energy, Notice of Final Determination on 2023 DOE Critical Materials List, 4 August 2023, Federal Register Vol. 88, No. 149, pp. 51792-51798 (Document 2023-16611): Table 1 rows for 'Graphite (natural and synthetic)', 'Graphite--natural', and 'Graphite--synthetic' and Footnote 6 on p. 51796 documenting that the 2022 DOI/USGS critical-mineral definition of graphite encompasses both natural and synthetic graphite.
    https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2023-08-04/html/2023-16611.htm (accessed 2026-10-18)

Curation History

Timestamp Curator Action Summary
2026-10-19T05:22:00Z antigravity CREATE Created synthetic-graphite commodity record from the USGS 2021 Minerals Yearbook Graphite chapter, USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026, and the 2023 US DOE Critical Materials List Federal Register notice, preserving distinctions from natural graphite and documenting the separate DOE sub-assessment versus combined USGS/DOE graphite criticality scope.

Record source: data/records/synthetic-graphite.yaml