Custom Carbon & Graphite Machining

16 May

Oak Ridge National Laboratory Turns Coal into Graphite

About 500 miles south of Semco Carbon’s manufacturing facility in Lorain, OH, in the hills of eastern Tennessee, sits Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), a facility with a storied past in America's nuclear program. Today, this national laboratory continues its tradition of breakthrough research, but with applications far beyond nuclear power. One particularly promising development at ORNL involves transforming a declining but valuable material—coal—into high-quality graphite essential for renewable energy and clean energy technologies. Coal's Second Act: Clean Energy Technologies For generations, coal powered America's industrial might. As the nation shifts toward cleaner energy sources, coal mining communities face uncertain...

07 May

Synthetic Graphite in Electric Vehicles

Think back ten years. Do you remember seeing electric vehicles on the road? Hybrids, perhaps, and yes, those featured advanced battery technology. But lithium-ion batteries were not powering many cars. Now, think of your commute today. Chances are, you saw several electric vehicles on your way to work. They have become so common, you probably don’t even notice them. The electric vehicle revolution continues to accelerate, with automakers worldwide transitioning their fleets from internal combustion engines to battery-powered alternatives. Behind this transformation lies a critical material that doesn't often make headlines but plays a significant role in the EV batteries...

17 Sep

Semco Invests in Another Overhead Crane

Last month, we wrote about the installation of a new 2000 lbs Gorbel overhead crane in our lathe department work space. We are excited to share that we have made a similar investment in an overhead crane, or bridge crane, to transport graphite blocks to our milling machines. Concurrently, Semco is investing in OSHA certification for employees who will operate the crane. This overhead crane is 32 ft wide by 50 ft long and, when installed, will be used to transport heavy graphite material to five of our milling machines. This new set-up in our milling department will make loading and...

02 Sep

High School Rocket Team Looks to Graphite

Imagine you are on a high school rocket team trying to solve engineering problems that have bedeviled, well, rocket scientists for decades. What will you use for rocket propellant, and what kind of rocket engine will you employ? Maybe graphite doesn’t immediately come to mind as a material important to the success of your rocket team, but seniors on a Texas high school rocket team would disagree. This year’s senior class at Fredericksburg High School is working to complete a Goddard-level rocket through the Systems Go program to fly at the White Sands missile range in New Mexico. They have...

23 Aug

Graphite: An Unsung Hero of the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics

As the world turns its eyes to Paris for the 2024 Summer Olympics, athletes will be pushing the boundaries of human performance. But behind many of their incredible feats of speed, power generation, and skill will be an unsung hero: graphite. This high performance, versatile material, especially in the form of carbon fiber and carbon fiber composite materials, usually combined with an epoxy resin to improve toughness and durability, is set to play a crucial role in numerous Olympic events and venues, from sports equipment to clothing and supplies. Semco employees are excited as anyone about the Paris Olympic games this...