To convert into graphite or to cause material to become graphitic in nature, especially through heat treatment.
From graphite plus -ize suffix meaning 'to make or become.' Emerged as a technical verb in 19th-century metallurgy and materials science.
When you graphitize cast iron at super-high heat, you're essentially encouraging the carbon atoms to rearrange themselves into lazy, low-friction sheets — like teaching atoms to relax!
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