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You could call this our "economy" graphite, which is almost as fine as our "Graphite Flake, Pure, Very Fine ("Microfyne")". Perhaps calling it Fine instead of Very Fine is enough, although it's actually somewhere between "Very Fine" and "Fine". The real difference and the reason it's less expensive is that it contains some impurities, mostly silica. It varies between 1% and 4% impurities. That's not much but there is a visual difference between it and the "Pure". It has less of that "graphite sheen". It's still there but to a lesser degree. Graphite is available in many different flake sizes and we have two. This is not an Asbury product like the "Pure" but their informative site's information is still true no matter who makes it. Here's the link and a few excerpts: https://asbury.com/technical-presentations-papers/introduction-to-graphite/ "Graphite can withstand high temperatures and is ideal as a lubricant and parting agent on pipe joints, gaskets, and packing subject to water, alkali, gas, acid, or brine. Also used to fortify various greases and oils. Commonly used for general maintenance and lubrication where a flake is required....Graphite is one of the three familiar naturally occurring forms of the chemical element carbon. The two other varieties are amorphous carbon (not to be confused with amorphous graphite) and diamond. Graphite is familiar to most people as the active ingredient in lead pencils. However, its use in writing instruments is far outweighed by a myriad of other industrial applications whose performance depends on the unique chemical and physical properties of this material. Graphite is a major additive to many industrial systems where it provides functionality as a refractory, lubricant, thermal conductor, electrical conductor, UV shield, electromagnetic pulse shield, corrosion shield, pigment, etc." Also, almost all life on earth is carbon is carbon based: "Carbon is the basic building block of all organic substances and is therefore the basis of all living things. Because carbon combines readily with oxygen, giving off heat as a by-product, it is also a vital energy source. Carbon is one of the most useful of all elements." It bears mentioning that carbon is also the basis of plastics and oil. There is an entire branch of chemistry that devoted to carbon, organic chemistry. Also a relatively new form of carbon is finding many applications from airplanes to snowboards, carbon fiber. When added to a water based medium this is not that interesting, it's another black tonal value. When added in very small amounts to a water clear urethane, epoxy or polyester, then it gets interesting, especially when combined with other pigments in very small quantities. It can be thought of a "surface effects" material, because like mica the particle shape is flakes. But, because graphite is dark the effects are not as bold as with micro fine flakes of mica with pigments, or flakes that have been rendered iridescent, or those that are classed as "interference" colors like some of the Pearl Ex colors. Graphite comes into its own as a pigment when suspended in clear resin castings or in thick clear coatings, again, in very small quantities. Another huge potential for micro fine flakes is using them on castings made in silicone molds (castings can be any size or thickness). Silicone rubber has a natural "tackiness" (besides the fact that it will release resin castings without the need for a release agent). That tackiness can be taken advantage of by brushing fine flakes, be they pigmented mica or graphite, pigmented or not, into/onto the silicone rubber cavity (all you need is a thin even coating, don't leave loose powder in the mold). When the clear resin is poured into the cavity it will pick up the brushed flakes and they will "transfer" and become part of the surface color of the casting. This give some very nice effects, a variably shiny, multicolor effect when viewed at different angles. The casting doesn't necessarily have to be clear, pigment or dyes can be added to it before casting for different effects. The graphite gives a sort of triple black/chrome/color effect if done right. The "chrome" comes from the reflectivity of the graphite flakes when viewed at different angles. It's reminiscent of things made of composite "carbon" (also called "graphite"!) fiber/epoxy. Graphite or carbon fiber composite objects have that same black/silvery-chrome look that's very appealing. If you try this "silicone mold transfer flake" technique, be prepared for some work put into experimentation and try to get several different flake types and sizes. Pearl Ex interference powders are actually a great thing to use initially because they work pretty reliably with different resin types, viscosities, and colors. There's also an economic advantage to this technique because the amount of pigment used for any single casting is far less than you'd use if you were coloring the entire casting. With this method you're only coloring the resin on and slightly under the surface of the casting. Having said that, this is a much better look than applying a colorant to the surface after the casting is made. The casting still has exactly the same texture and sheen as the silicone mold surface, it's not obscured or covered by a layer of spray paint (as an example).-
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