Black Swan Graphene is revolutionizing the concrete and plastics industries with low-cost, high-performance bulk graphene 

Two hundred times stronger than steel and a better conductor of heat and electricity than copper, graphene is set to transform industries from concrete to plastics, and even battery materials.  

Dubbed the “wonder material” due to its ability to make products stronger, smaller, and lighter, graphene is a thin, single layer of graphite.  

Bulk graphene, which, generally speaking, has five to 100 layers, has significant potential in large-volume applications because it is far cheaper to produce than the single-layer graphene used in low-volume applications, usually electronics.  

And, just like carbon fibre experienced in the 1990s, demand for bulk graphene is set to explode once the price is right, according to Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) analysts.  

In a 2016 research report, the analysts cited a price tipping point of US$25 per kilo for bulk graphene to be competitively priced as a tire additive.  

With a focus on low-cost, high-performance bulk graphene, Black Swan Graphene intends to enter the market with a target selling price of US$8 to US$10 per kilogram.  

The company, which already has a production capacity of 40 tonnes at its pilot plant in the United Kingdom, is creating a fully integrated graphite-to-graphene facility in Québec, Canada.  

Black Swan CEO Simon Marcotte said the company is working in steps toward its envisioned large-scale production of 10,000 tonnes.  

“We’re talking about becoming one of the largest volume graphene-producing companies globally,” he said.  

This vision has been a long time in the making despite the fact Black Swan Graphene (TSX-V:SWAN) was only founded in July 2019 and went public in August 2022.  

The company is the result of a partnership between UK-based chemical manufacturing company Thomas Swan & Co Ltd and Canadian specialty mineral developer Mason Graphite Inc (TSX-V:LLG, OTCQX:MGPHF) that retains 16% and 41% stakes in the company respectively.  

Black Swan now owns patented graphene processing technologies that have been developed by Thomas Swan over the past decade which, in combination with raw material from the rapidly emerging graphite industry in Quebec, positions the company as a leading supplier of graphene.  

“There are very few companies that have the expertise and know-how to produce a bulk graphene powder that performs well at low cost: one of those companies is Thomas Swan,” Marcotte told Proactive.  

The chairman of Black Swan is Mr Harry Swan, the president and CEO of Thomas Swan, a fourth-generation leader. 

Low-cost and scalable bulk graphene production 

Black Swan’s patented mechanical chemical exfoliation process of producing graphene is far less expensive than competing processes such as chemical vapor deposition, according to Marcotte.  

“We are looking to come onto the market at between US$8 to US$10 a kilogram and our expected cost of production on a large-scale basis will be about half of that,” Marcotte noted.  

“When you look at the economics of this project, you’re looking at economic returns that are miles ahead than any mining projects, for example.”  

The company’s proven ability to scale its production process also sets it apart.  

“It’s a risk for many new products, that they can’t be scaled up in production, but we have scaled all the way up to commercial scale,” Marcotte noted.  

Reducing concrete’s environmental impact  

Black Swan Graphene is focused on two initial target markets for its bulk graphene product: concrete and plastics.  

“Concrete is by far the biggest opportunity as it is the second most used substance on earth after water, so unless we come up with a new recipe for water, this is the biggest market opportunity I can see!” Marcotte said.  

The concrete industry has a significant environmental impact, making up about 8% of global carbon emissions.  

“If concrete was a country, it would rank third after the United States and China as the largest emitter,” Marcotte noted.  

By injecting graphene into concrete, the same strength can be achieved while reducing the overall amount of concrete required and, in turn, reducing the industry’s carbon footprint.  

“You can achieve the same strength and properties by using nearly 40% less concrete,” Marcotte said.  

In fact, graphene extends the lifespan of concrete as it prevents water penetration which leads to cracking. Graphene-enhanced concrete also reduces, if not completely eliminates, the use of rebar, which is not only expensive but also leads to cracking as it oxidizes.  

Marcotte described graphene as a “game changer” for the company’s second initial target market of plastics (polymers), with the plastic additives market highly addressable at about US$40 billion annually.  

When added to plastic, bulk graphene has a range of benefits including being light weighting and low-cost, and improved precision, gas permeability, and thermal conductivity.  

Down the road, Marcotte said the company has considered entering the tire additives market, with bulk graphene to replace coal or petroleum-based carbon black, but “for this, you need the graphene market to be more mature as a whole to have a lot more capacity,” he said.  

Black Swan VP of Corporate Development Paul Hardy told Proactive that the company sits in the “sweet spot” between functional and emotional, which he said was beneficial when connecting with buyers and investors.  

“We have the functionality of the quality improvement by adding graphene to cement and polymers, and on the emotional side, there’s the positive environmental impact of carbon dioxide emission reduction,” Hardy said.  

Adding graphene production capacity   

Strategic alliances are set to play a key role in Black Swan’s next steps. 

The company has partnered with Nouveau Monde Graphite (TSX-V:NOU) (NMG), under a proposed joint venture between NMG and Mason Graphite, to establish graphene production capacity within their graphite processing plant in Saint-Michel-des-Saints in Québec.  

The processing plant has a design throughput of 3.5 tonnes of ore per hour, the equivalent nameplate production capacity of approximately 1,000 tonnes of graphite concentrate per annum using NMG's ore grading an average of 4.5% graphitic carbon.  

Marcotte noted this move, in addition to the company’s pilot plant in the UK, positioned Black to serve both the European and North American graphene markets.  

As part of this agreement, the company has commissioned a scoping study, expected in the first half of 2023. The scoping study is hoped to bring greater visibility to graphene’s potential and help Black Swan find end users, which Marcotte said is one risk of operating in a new market.  

As such, the company has entered into a multi-year distribution agreement with Gerdau Grafeno Ltda, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gerdau SA, which will market, promote and resell Black Swan’s products in the Americas.  

Black Swan hopes that in the not-so-distant future, legislation is introduced to require the adoption of graphene-enhanced concrete. 

“What really moves the story here is the end user and we are making progress on that matter,” Marcotte said. “And we expect to be able to communicate developments to the market in the weeks and months ahead.”  

Contact the author at [email protected] 

Follow her on Twitter @emilyjjarvie