ASX- and AIM-listed Sovereign Metals has reported exceptional results from purification testing of coarse flake graphite concentrate from its Kasiya rutile/graphite project in Malawi.
The tests confirm the graphite’s suitability for high-grade applications, including powder metallurgy, isostatically pressed refractory products, and high-grade expandables.
These applications typically require graphite with less than 1% ash content, corresponding to a loss on ignition (LoI) purity of more than 99%.
Sovereign Metals engaged ProGraphite to conduct test work on coarse (>180-micron) flake graphite from Kasiya, evaluating both acid and alkaline purification methods under industry-standard conditions for achieving greater than 99% LoI purity.
The results showed that acid purification achieved a 99.95% LoI purity, while alkaline purification reached an even higher 99.98% LoI purity.
“These are truly outstanding results—effectively achieving battery-grade purities of over 99% and ash levels below 0.05% under conditions that typically result in less than 1% ash,” said CEO and Managing Director Frank Eagar.
He added that this could significantly reduce reagent consumption and waste generation for future customers in the production of high-purity flake graphite for specialized applications.
“These results further confirm that Kasiya’s graphite concentrate is a premium product, suitable for anode materials, refractory applications, expandables, and now high-purity powder metallurgy markets,” Eagar noted.
He emphasized that these findings enhance the commercial potential of the Kasiya rutile and graphite project.
