V. Roy
Purdue University, Indiana, United States
Keywords: Critical materials, supply chain security, AI-driven traceability, Foreign Entity of Concern (FEOC) regulations, lithium-ion batteries
Despite widespread recognition of China's dominance in critical materials processing (80%+ of rare earths, lithium refining), companies lack visibility into where these materials actually exist within their specific products and processes. Critical materials in batteries, semiconductors, and advanced materials power everything from consumer electronics to fighter jets, yet this micro-level information gap prevents actionable supply chain decisions and compliance with emerging Foreign Entity of Concern (FEOC) regulations. A comprehensive framework has been developed to trace critical materials through complex supply networks using inventory databases, graph-based modeling, and AI-driven location assignment via LLM-enabled search with human-in-loop validation. The methodology was successfully demonstrated on lithium carbonate extraction, providing state-level traceability of material flows and processing locations. This proven framework is being extended to complex manufactured products, beginning with US-produced lithium-ion batteries. The enhanced system will provide company/facility-level tracking and ownership structure analysis, enabling precise identification of foreign entity dependencies throughout multi-tier supply chains. This technology enables organizations to achieve FEOC compliance for critical tax incentives (Section 45X manufacturing credits, CHIPS Act funding) while identifying domestic alternative sources, and provides defense applications with supply chain security intelligence for critical technologies, supporting strategic sourcing decisions and resilience planning from component to mission-critical systems.