There certianly could be a link given how interwoven pyr and hpq have become....although PYR did not reference synthetic production in their PR and Bernard was pretty specific in that regard.
With that being said however, we may be able to fill in some of the blanks....
Yes, synthetic graphite can be made using plasma, and there are several methods for doing so:
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Inductively coupled plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition
This method can be used to grow thin graphite films on polycrystalline nickel films at low temperatures. The quality of the graphite films can be affected by the amount of hydrogen radicals, the pressure, and the plasma power.
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Arc plasma treatment
This method can be used to create spheroidal graphite by placing the graphite material directly under the central plasma zone of an arc. The plasma treatment can be done for 5–10 minutes, depending on the mass of the graphite disc.
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Plasma jet printing
This method can be used to create graphite anodes that have no additional additives like conductive diluents and binders. This results in a greater utilization of the active material.
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Plasma spraying
This method involves melting powdered coating materials in a jet of plasma and spraying them on a surface. This method can be used to create graphene flakes from graphite particles.
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Dielectric Barrier Discharge (DBD) Plasma Reactors
This method is used by industry to produce graphene commercially. It involves forming a plasma between two electrodes and passing an alternating current in the presence of carbon atoms and other working gases.
