Pinhole formation and weight loss during oxidation of industrial graphite and carbon Original Research Article

The performance of graphite or carbon above 400°C depends to a large degree on its resistance to oxidation. In this work oxidation data of graphite and carbon was analyzed using the number of created pinholes for short-term oxidation and weight loss for long-term oxidation. The effect of grain size, purification, and the amount of inorganic impurities was investigated. The migration of vanadium, the formation and morphology of pinholes, and the weight loss were followed in different samples. Short-term oxidation is diminished by the presence of calcium salts and enhanced by the presence of V2O5, but the latter effect is diminished by the presence of Ca3V2O8. Both calcium salts and V2O5 enhance the long-term oxidation.