New Zealand company CarbonScape converts waste wood chips into synthetic graphite that can be used in electric vehicle batteries. The material is manufactured in the EU and the US, reducing dependence on Chinese graphite supplies.
The company makes “biographite” by heating forestry byproducts using a process called thermal catalytic graphitization. This produces charcoal that can be catalyzed and purified into battery anode-quality graphite.
The startup says its alternative graphite is a more sustainable option that could help Europe reduce its reliance on Chinese lithium-ion batteries.
What is Biographite and Why is It Important?
Currently, graphite, a key component of electric vehicle batteries, comes from mined natural graphite or synthetic graphite extracted from petroleum products.
According to CEO Ivan Williams, CarbonScape's bio-graphite is friendlier to the Earth.
“‘Traditional’ synthetic graphite production uses fossil fuel-based feedstocks, such as coal tar pitch and petroleum coke, and fossil fuel-driven processes,” the CEO said.
“So, for every ton of graphite produced, 35 tonnes of CO2e are emitted.”
Naturally mined graphite causes severe damage to communities, animals and the environment, and the extraction and production processes required to produce 1 tonne of anode-grade graphite from this raw material leave a carbon footprint of 15 tonnes.
In contrast, biographite is made from forestry byproducts such as wood chips.
“Using these widely available sustainable feedstocks allows our products to capture carbon that would otherwise be emitted as it decays,” Williams said.
This means our technology saves the equivalent of 2.7 tonnes of carbon emissions for every tonne of biographite produced, making it a climate-friendly alternative to a key material in lithium-ion batteries.
Biographite production can also take place close to battery factories, further reducing CO2 emissions by shortening transportation distances.
We can also set up production plants close to battery and cell manufacturers and electric vehicle manufacturers, further improving supply chain security while providing additional economic and environmental benefits.
Can bio-graphite help Europe reduce its dependence on Chinese electric vehicle batteries?
CarbonScape hopes bio-graphite can help Western countries reduce their reliance on Chinese lithium iron phosphate batteries, which are used in many electric vehicles.
According to Statista, China produced approximately 5.5 million electric vehicles in 2022, accounting for more than half of the world's electric vehicle production that year.
Critics say CarbonScape's system requires a large supply of wood chips and is not as cost-effective as graphite.
However, Williams said, “We could meet half of the global graphite demand for grid-scale and electric vehicle batteries by 2030 with bio-based graphite using less than 5% of the forestry byproducts generated annually in Europe and North America.”
Last year (2023), CarbonScape secured $18 million (€16.7 million) in funding from Finnish-Swedish forestry company Stora Enso and Hong Kong battery manufacturer Amperex Technology Ltd (ATL).
The investment, which covers the cost of building commercial biographite plants in Europe and the United States, comes at a significant time as demand for graphite surges in the booming electric vehicle market.
According to the consultancy Project Blue, the world will face a graphite supply shortage of 777,000 tonnes by 2030.
Source: euronews.green (February 26, 2024) Cars powered by woodchips: Biographite makes EV batteries sustainable
