Preparation of needle coke from petroleum by-products

Needle coke is an important material for graphite electrodes. Delayed coking is used to produce needle coke. Producing good quality needle coke is not simple because it is a multi-parameter controlled process. Apart from that, it is important to understand the mechanism responsible for the delayed coking process, which involves mesophase formation and uniaxial rearrangement. Temperature and pressure need to be optimized for the different substances in every feedstock. Saturate hydrocarbon, aromatic, resin and asphaltene compounds are the main components in the delayed coking process for a low Coefficient Thermal Expansion value. In addition, heteroatoms, such as sulphur, oxygen, nitrogen and metal impurities, must be considered for a better graphitization process that prevents the puffing effect and produces better mesophase formation.