Mesophase pitch is the important feedstock for industrial carbon. The industrial carbon materials based on mesophase pitch include carbon fibers

graphite electrodes

and carbon materials for thermal management. The synthesis technology of mesophase pitch is primitive that does not meet the requirements of high quality industrial carbon. The issues come from lack of molecular characterization and poor understanding of the reaction mechanisms. As a result

the product quality of mesophase pitch suffers. The future of mesophase pitch synthesis lays on the pitch molecular characterization. Only through effective measurement of the molecular weight distribution and quantitative description of the structural asymmetry

will the empirical definition of mesophase pitch be updated

a scientific definition be given based on the molecular weight and molecular structure

and the synthesis of mesophase pitch get improved. To understand the reaction mechanisms one will not only measure the mesophase pitch molecular weight distribution and characterize the molecular structural asymmetry

but establish the models for degradation and polymerization of aromatics mixtures with the help of computers. The accurate molecular characterization and reaction mechanisms will then serve the mesophase pitch product quality well.