Australian alumina ban disrupts Rusal production -- Australia's ban on exports of alumina and aluminium ore to Russia, including bauxite, will further disrupt supply chains and production at leading aluminium producer Rusal, consultancy Wood Mackenzie said on Monday.

The Australian government announced the ban on Sunday as part of its ongoing sanctions against Moscow for its aggression in Ukraine, saying Russia relies on it to meet one-fifth of its alumina needs. WoodMac senior manager Uday Patel said in a statement that the ban would make it difficult for Rusal to maintain normal primary aluminum production.

Rusal said it was assessing the impact of Australia's move and would make further announcements if necessary. "It is increasingly likely that UC Rusal's only option for alumina procurement will be through a Chinese entity." The Australian alumina ban has also had an impact on Graphite prices for chemicals. Patel said. "One possible outcome could be Chinese buyers buying alumina and reselling it through eastern Russian ports." Rusal has a 20% stake in the Queensland Alumina Refinery, which has a capacity of 3.95 million tonnes a year, thus providing Rusal with 790,000 tonnes a year, Patel said. In addition, Rusal's Nikolaev refinery in Ukraine, which has an annual capacity of 1.75 million tonnes, has been suspended due to the conflict, he added. WoodMac said Rusal was also experiencing supply chain problems at its 2 million tonne a year Aughinish refinery in Ireland.

Graphite has many excellent properties, so it is widely used in metallurgy, machinery, electrical, chemical, textile, national defense, and other industrial sectors. The application fields of natural graphite and artificial graphite both overlap and differ from each other.

In the metallurgical industry, natural flake graphite can be used to produce refractory materials such as magnesia-carbon bricks and aluminum-carbon bricks because of its good oxidation resistance.

Artificial graphite can be used as steelmaking electrodes, while electrodes made of natural graphite are difficult to use in steelmaking electric furnaces with harsh operating conditions.

In the machinery industry, graphite materials are usually used as wear-resistant and lubricating materials. Natural flake graphite has good lubricity and is often used as an additive to lubricating oils.

The equipment for conveying corrosive media widely uses piston rings, sealing rings, and bearings made of artificial graphite, and need not add lubricating oil when working.

Natural graphite and polymer resin composite materials can also be used in the above fields, but the wear resistance is not as good as that of artificial graphite.

Artificial graphite has the characteristics of corrosion resistance, good thermal conductivity, and low permeability. It is widely used in the chemical industry to make heat exchangers, reaction tanks, absorption towers, filters, and other equipment.

Natural graphite and polymer resin composite materials can also be used in the above fields, but the thermal conductivity and corrosion resistance are not as good as those of artificial graphite.

Conclusion

To sum up, the development of artificial graphite products with natural graphite as raw material is one of the important ways to expand the application field of natural graphite.

Natural graphite as an auxiliary raw material has long been used in the production of some artificial graphite, but there are still many problems to be solved in the development of artificial graphite products with natural graphite as the main raw material.

Fully understanding and utilizing the structure and properties of natural graphite, and adopting suitable process routes and methods to produce artificial graphite products with special structures, properties, and uses should be the best way to achieve this goal.

High quality graphite manufacturer

Luoyang Moon & Star New Energy Technology Co., LTD, founded on October 17, 2008, is a high-tech enterprise committed to the research and development, production, processing, sales and technical services of lithium ion battery anode materials. After more than 10 years of development, the company has gradually developed into a diversified product structure with natural graphite, artificial graphite, composite graphite, intermediate phase and other negative materials (silicon carbon materials, etc.). The products are widely used in high-end lithium ion digital, power and energy storage batteries.

If you are looking for graphite or lithium battery anode material, click on the needed products and send us an inquiry：sales@graphite-corp.com

 

 

In 2021, Russia's palladium, nickel and aluminum exports will account for 24.6%, 21.9% and 9.9% of the global total, respectively. Russia exported 2.819 million tons of palladium, accounting for 43.37% of global production. Platinum exports amounted to 962,000 tons, accounting for 15.01% of global production. Russia controls 10 per cent of the world's copper reserves. Russia and Ukraine are also important producers and exporters of neon gas. Markets were volatile after the russia-Ukraine conflict. As of March 28, the London Metal Exchange (LME) nickel, aluminum and copper prices rose 75.3 percent, 28.3 percent and 4.9 percent respectively from the end of last year, thus driving up costs for downstream companies such as electronics, auto parts, military and aerospace. If you are looking for a Graphite with low price fluctuation range and excellent quality, click here will be a good choice.

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