High-purity graphite is a sought-after material for lithium-ion batteries and graphene production. Most organic materials do not graphitise upon heating unless a metal catalyst is present. The catalyst becomes embedded in the graphite and is difficult to remove. Here, we present a catalysis-free technique capable of producing highly crystalline graphite from materials generally considered incapable of this transformation. Using the furnace inside an Atomic Absorption Spectrometer, we perform repeated high-temperature pulsing of polyvinylidene chloride followed by analysis with Raman, X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. Unexpectedly, ~90% of the sample transforms into highly ordered graphite with very few defects. A combustion route is proposed in which oxygen attacks the structural units that inhibit graphitisation. We apply the same approach to cellulose and obtain ten times more ordered material than conventional furnaces, confirming that polyvinylidene chloride is not an isolated case. Potentially, this method could be used to synthesise graphite from any organic material, including waste sources such as biomass.

高纯度石墨是锂离子电池和石墨烯生产中的抢手材料。除非存在金属催化剂，否则大多数有机材料在加热时不会石墨化。催化剂嵌入石墨中，难以去除。在这里，我们提出了一种无催化技术，该技术能够从通常认为无法进行这种转化的材料生产高结晶度的石墨。使用原子吸收光谱仪中的熔炉，我们对聚偏二氯乙烯进行重复的高温脉冲处理，然后用拉曼分析，X射线衍射和透射电子显微镜进行分析。出乎意料的是，约有90％的样品转变为几乎没有缺陷的高度有序的石墨。提出了一种燃烧途径，其中氧攻击抑制石墨化的结构单元。我们对纤维素采用相同的方法，获得的有序材料是传统熔炉的十倍，这证明聚偏二氯乙烯不是孤立的情况。潜在地，此方法可用于从任何有机材料（包括废物源，例如生物质）合成石墨。