silicone coating

Where and How Silicone can be used?

Silicone is one element that is very abundant and is top second on Earth, which is 25.8% on the earth’s surface. Most people know the function of metal silicone. Silicon semiconductor materials have boosted the development of the modern electronic industry. In addition, silicate-based inorganic silicon compounds are widely existing in nature, which is very convenient to use. Over thousands of years, people use silicone-related materials to produce cement, glass, ceramics, and other products.

Inorganic silicone compounds have been applied very early to produce products such as glass and ceramics. But organic silicone compounds do not exist in nature. It is mainly by synthesis and was synthesized around 50 years ago. Since industrialization in the 1940s, organic silicone compounds have developed rapidly.

Organic silicon, also known as silicone or siloxane, is a siloxane organic polymer cross-linked from silicon and oxygen. It has good characteristics with excellent heat resistance, cold resistance, oxidation resistance, and electrical insulation, which are not available from other general organic polymers. Among the organic silicon compounds, Poly siloxane has wide applications with its special structural characteristics.

 

Silicone materials are mainly divided into silicone oil (Dimethicone/PDMS/ Dimethyl Silicone Fluid, silicone defoamer, silicone leveling agent, polyether-modified silicone oil), silicone rubber, silicone resin, and silane coupling agent, etc. And there are various silicone material-related products. For example, Dow Corning has more than 4000 kinds of types of silicone materials.  If converted into Poly siloxane, the total global consumption of various silicone products is about 650,000 tons, which accounts for 0.65% of the global total output of different synthetic resin products. In addition, the sales amount of silicone products is as high as $6.5 billion, which accounts for 7% of the global total sales amount of different synthetic resin products.

Silicone can be widely used in the production of silicone fluid, agriculture silicone adjuvant, advanced lubricants, adhesives, dielectric oil, adhesives, paint, anti-foaming agents, gasket, seals as well as spare parts for rockets and missiles. In recent years, silicone material has been applied gradually from military or national defense to people’s daily life. Products for daily application include conductive buttons for computers, mobile phones, and electrical keyboards; contact lenses, swimming glasses, and swimming caps; nipple; silicone sealants for curtainwalls; finishing agent for high-end leather or fabric; silicone oil for shampoo. Silicone material has become a necessary part of people’s daily life. It also becomes a new chemical material with development on its rise.

 

silicone coating

With the prospects of silicone material, many developed countries put silicone materials as one of the most important new materials for the key development of the new century. Organic silicon is new material itself, meanwhile, it is also the new material foundation for the development of related industrial areas. Given the changing nature of organic silicon material and with the characteristics of small volume wide application, it is reputed as the catalyst for scientific and technological development. In the silicone industry, only a few upstream enterprises are on a large scale and most of them are small and medium-sized private enterprises engaged in the production of consumer products and additives.

Main silicone products and their applications

Silicone materials are mainly grouped into four categories: silicone oil with its secondary processing products, silicone rubber, silicone resin, and silane coupling agent. It is known as industrial MSG as silicone products have the properties of electrical insulation, corrosion resistance, radiation resistance, flame resistance, high and low-temperature resistance as well as physiological inertia. They are widely applied in building materials, electronic and electrical products, light industry, textile, plastics, rubber, machinery, transportation, medical and other industries. At present, the global annual production capacity of silicone products has reached more than 1.2 million tons. There are around 5,000 to 10,000 products, and the total market sales can reach US $7 billion.

Among the more than 10,000 kinds of silicone products can be roughly divided into three categories: raw materials, intermediates, and products. Silicone monomer refers to organic silicon polymer monomers synthesized by organic chlorosilane, such as raw materials like benzene chlorosilane, methyl chlorosilane, vinyl dichlorosilane, and some other materials.

Organic silicon intermediates refer to line-type or ring-type siloxane oligomers, such as octamethyl cyclotetra siloxane (D4), hexamethyldisilane (MM), dimethyl cyclosilane mixture (DMC), etc. Silicone products are the products produced by the polymerization reaction with add of inorganic fillers or modified additives. It mainly includes silicone rubber (high-temperature vulcanized silicone rubber and room-temperature vulcanized silicone rubber), silicone oil and its secondary processing products, silicone resin, and silane coupling agent. And through the sulfur molding process, silicone rubber can be made into conductive keys, seal gaskets, swimming caps, and many other consumer products.

Silicone monomer

Although there are many varieties of silicone products, its starting raw materials for production are limited to a few organic silicon monomers. The top amount is trimethylchlorosilane, followed by phenyl chlorosilane. In addition, trimethylchlorosilane, ethyl and propyl chlorosilane, vinyl chlorosilane, etc., are also necessary raw materials in the production of silicone products.

The production of silicon monomers is not complicated. The main raw material for silicon monomer is silicon block, methanol, and hydrogen chloride. At present, methyl hydrochloride monomer is synthesized in a boiling bed reactor. Silicon powder and chloromethane are reacted under a catalyst at a high temperature which makes a methyl hydrochloride mixture. And through efficient fractionation, the target fraction is obtained. Silicone monomers are made by hydrolysis, lysis, and condensation to get different products. With silicon monomer as the raw material and using different polymerization means and processes, different silicone products can be produced by adding various fillers and additives. The basic raw materials for the production of silicone oil, silicone rubber, silicone resin, and silane coupling agent are different kinds of organic silicon monomers. From these basic silicone monomers, thousands of organic silicon products can be produced. Organic silicon monomers mainly include methyl chlorosilane (methyl-monomer), phenyl chlorosilane (benzene-monomer), methyl vinyl chlorosilane, vinyl trichlorosilane, ethyl trichlorosilane, propyl trichlorosilane, γ-chloropropyl trichlorosilane, and fluor silane monomer. Among them, methyl chlorosilane accounts for the top amount, which is 90% of the total monomer, followed by phenyl chlorosilane.

Organo chlorosilane (methyl chlorosilane, phenyl chlorosilane, vinyl chlorosilane) is the basis of the whole silicone industry, and methyl chlorosilane is the pillar in the organic silicone industry. Most of the silicone polymers are Poly dimethyl siloxane made from trimethylchlorosilane. After adding other groups such as phenyl, vinyl, chlorophenyl, fluoroalkyl, etc., the product can meet special needs. The production process of methyl chlorosilane is very long and difficult for production technicians. This industry is technology-intensive and capital-intensive. Therefore, the basic manufacturing site of the major foreign companies is on a large scale and under centralized construction.  While the manufacturing of the downstream product is distributed as per their use and market conditions.

The key to the development of any polymer material is monomer technology development. The feature of the silicone industry is that the monomer production is concentrated, and the further process of silicone products are in different places. Therefore, the production of monomers plays an important role in the silicone industry. And the level of monomer production is a direct reflection of the development of the silicone industry. 

Silicone intermediates

Organic silicon monomers can be made into different silicone intermediates by hydrolysis (or lysis) and lysis. Silicone intermediates are the direct raw material to form silicone rubber, silicone oil, and silicone resin. Silicone intermediates include hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane(D3), octa-ethyl cyclic tetrasiloxane (D4), hexamethyldisilane (MM), dimethyl cyclosiloxane mixture (DMC), and other linear or cyclic dioxide series.

 Silicone rubber

Silicone rubber is one of the important products among silicone polymers. Among all rubber, silicone rubber can work under a wide temperature range, from -100℃~350℃. It is excellent in high and low-temperature resistance. According to its ionization mechanism, silicone rubber has three categories: organic peroxide-induced free radical crosslinking type (High temperature vulcanized silicone), condensation reaction type (Room temperature vulcanized silicone), and addition reaction type. High-temperature vulcanized silicone rubber (HTV): thermal vulcanized silicone rubber is also called high-temperature vulcanized silicone rubber. All the direct chain siloxane with molecular weight between 500,000-800,000 is grouped as high-temperature vulcanized rubber. Usually, gum can be made with octa ethyl cyclo tetrasiloxane (D4) as the main raw material and get polymerized under the catalysis of acid or alkali. Then with oxides as a crosslinking agent and combined with different additives (such as reinforcing filler, thermal stabilizer, structural control agent, etc.), it can be made into homogeneous rubber additives. Various rubber products can be vulcanized by molding, extrusion or calendaring, etc.,

Room temperature vulcanized silicone rubber (RTV) and addition reaction silicone rubber (LSR). Room temperature vulcanized silicone rubber refers to the one which uses low molecular weight active Poly Organo siloxane as the base material and can be formed with the crosslinker and catalyst at room temperature.

Addition reaction silicone rubber refers to the silicone rubber which is made under the addition reaction with the platinum compound as catalyst. It has no by-products during the reaction. Usually, it is composed by vinyl terminated polydimethylsiloxane, silicone resin, low molecular weight polymethyl hydro siloxane, a platinum catalyst, and reaction inhibitor, etc., It is also known as liquid silicone rubber or LSR. Usually, additional reactive silicone rubber is also vulcanized at room temperature (medium temperature), so it is also classified as room temperature sulfide silicone rubber. The above two of these are referred to as room-temperature vulcanized silicone rubber.

 

Room-temperature vulcanized silicone rubber has a low molecular weight (from 10,000 to 80,000), and it is a viscous liquid. As per different package forms, it can be divided into single-component RTV silicone rubber and two-component RTV silicone rubber. Single-component RTV silicone rubber mixes the raw rubber evenly with filler, crosslinker, or catalyst in anhydrous conditions. And it will react with the moisture in the atmosphere after opening. While two-component RTV silicone rubber usually puts the raw rubber and crosslinker agent or catalyst in separate packages. They will link together when mixed in a certain ratio. Its reaction is not related to moisture.

Silicone Oil or Silicone Fluid

silicone oil is a kind of Poly siloxane liquid oil with different viscosity. It is not toxic, not corrosive, has no smell, and is not easy to burn. According to the chemical structure, silicone oil can be divided into methyl silicone oil, phenyl silicone oil, ethyl silicone oil, methyl hydrogen silicone oil, methyl chlorophenyl silicone oil, methyl phenyl silicone oil, methyl ethoxy silicone oil, and methyl trifluoro propane, etc., Among them, methyl silicone oil is the top item. By changing the polymerization degree of Poly siloxane and the type of organic group, or making Poly siloxane polymerized with other organic compounds, silicone oil with different properties can be made, such as waterproofing, anti-adhesion, demolding or defoaming. Silicone oil can also be grouped into linear silicone oil and modified silicone oil.

Silicone oil has many special properties. Its features include low viscosity-temperature coefficient, antioxidant resistance, good resistance to high and low temperature, high flash point, excellent insulation, low volatility, low surface tension, no corrosion to the metal, non-toxic, etc., With these properties, silicone oil has excellent effects in different applications. Among all kinds of silicone oils, methyl silicone oil is the most widely applied and is the most important type followed by methyl phenyl silicone oil. Different functional silicone oils and modified silicone oils are mainly used for special purposes.

 

silicone potting

Silicone resin

Silicone resin is a semi-inorganic polymer with silicon-oxygen-silicon as the main chain and with silicon atoms cross-linked with organic groups. It emerged along with the silicone monomer produced by the silicone monomer. Its production is a half year ahead of silicone oil and silicone rubber.

Silicone resin has outstanding weather resistance, which is better than any other organic resin. Even under strong ultraviolet irradiation, silicone resin still has good yellowing resistance. Silicone also has superior dielectric properties. The property can remain stable in a wide range of temperatures, humidity, and frequency. In addition, it also has good oxidation resistance, irradiation resistance, smoke resistance, waterproof, mildew prevention, and other characteristics.

 

Silane coupling agent

The general formula of the silane coupling agent can be Y-R-SiX3. X and Y are two active groups with different reaction characteristics. X is easy to bind strongly with clay, glass, silica, metal, and metal oxides, while Y is easy to bind with resin and rubber in organic material. With both functional groups that can have a good reaction with organic and inorganic material, a silane coupling agent can bond organic and inorganic material together to reach satisfactory bonding. According to the number of hydrolyzed groups (X groups) connected to silicon atoms, the silane coupling agents can be divided into two groups: trifunctional and difunctional types. In recent years, the production of silane coupling agents is controlled by several giant companies. To form a monopoly, every company has named its product types, and for the same product, there are various names and types on the market. Union Carbide Corporation (UCC) is the world’s largest silane coupling agent manufacturer and has the largest number of product varieties. Silane coupling agent was first developed as a glass fiber treatment agent for glass fiber-reinforced plastics. The silane coupling agent has improved the adhesion between the glass fiber and the resin, thus the mechanical properties of the reinforced plastics are significantly improved. With the rapid development of composites, silane coupling agent also develops rapidly both in variety and output. In recent years, silane coupling agent has adopted some specific functional groups and this can improve the surface properties of materials, which get new properties such as antimildew, antistatic, anticoagulation, and physiological inert. This has become a new application for silane coupling agents. Along with the new development, silane coupling agents become an important branch of organic silicone.

Development history of silicone

All compounds containing Si-C bonds are generally called organic silicon compounds. Those that connect organic groups like oxygen, sulfur, and nitrogen to silicon atoms are also regarded as organic silicon compounds. Among them, the Poly siloxane composed of silicone oxygen bond (-Si-0-Si-) accounts for the top amount in silicone compounds. It is the most studied and widely applied type in silicone compounds, which is more than 90% of the total. Silicone material has both properties of organic materials and inorganic materials. It has many good properties such as high and low-temperature resistance, ozone resistance, electrical insulation, radiation resistance, flame retardant, water resistance, non-toxic and physiological inertia, and other excellent characteristics. The silicone material is widely applied in electrical, electronics, construction, chemical, textile, medical and other industries. The main functions of silicone include sealing, adhesion, encapsulation, lubrication, coating, lamination, surface activity, releasing, anti-foaming, crosslinking, waterproofing, penetrating, insertion and filling, etc. With the continuous development of the quantity and varieties of silicone material, it has become one of the most important materials in the new chemical material field. Many varieties of silicone are unable to be replaced by other chemicals.

 

silicone factory

Different phases of silicone chemistry

Beginning period: In 1863, French scientists Fiddle and Kraft heated silicon tetrachloride and zinc diethyl to 160℃ in a sealing tube and synthesized the first silicone compound, which is tetraethyl silane with Si-C bonds. Since then, much more tetraethyl silane derivatives have been synthesized. The forty years from 1863 to 1903 was the founding period of silicone chemistry, which was also referred to as the first phase

 

Growing period: From 1904 to 1937, there are many simple silicone compounds were synthesized. Meanwhile, some ring and linear Poly siloxane (with-Si-0-Si-bonds as the backbone). From the theoretical aspect, the synthesis of asymmetric silicon atomic compounds has been started, which created circumstances for the study of silicone photoactive isoforms. These 30 years were referred to as the growing period of silicone chemistry, which is also called the second phase.

Development period: Chemist Hyde from Corning as well as Patnode and Rojo from General Electronics realized that silicone polymer would have a good future, and they have actively improved the synthesis of silicone monomer. This helped the industrialization of silicone. In particular, Rojo invented the direct synthesis method for methyl chlorosilane in 1941. This was a revolution in the production of silicone and was a good foundation for the large-scale production of silicone compounds. In the 1940s, when some of the major countries realized industrialization, the equilibrium reaction methods of Poly organic siloxane were invented. And a complete system of industrial technologies was established. Different types of silicone oil, silicone rubber, silicone resin, and silane coupling agent with excellent performance have emerged. The development of the silicone industry was accelerated. The period from 1938 to1965 was called the third phase.

Boom period: Since 1966, further, consolidating, developing, improving, and utilizing the existing achievements, silicone was also developing in the new field. Some compounds which were impossible to make can also be synthesized. One of the groups with the fastest development is silicon —— metal bonding compounds. Especially chemical products formed by silicon and transition elements, and this has more practical value. And silicone chemistry has yielded fruitful results. So, the period from 1966 has been called the fourth phase.

 

The development of science has promoted the development of production and construction. And the production in turn has new requirements for scientific research. In many industries, thermal resistance is needed. But normal organic polymers cannot meet the demands. Natural silicate is long known but its -Si-0-Si- bond is fragile. Therefore, chemists introduced silicon atoms with an organic group, which can make them a linear structure or low-degree crosslinked polymer. Thus, the silicone material can form flexible or elastic material, and the application would be further enlarged. The study on Organo Poly siloxane also started. Chemist Hyde from Corning Glass first combined silicone and polymer chemistry and gained experience in silicone polymerization. Under his guidance, silicone resin was produced for electronic insulated glass cloth. From 1938 and 1941, Hyde and his collaborators developed many more Poly organic siloxane products. Meanwhile, Dow Chemical also started the study and production of Poly organic siloxane. In 1942, a dimethyl silicone oil and toluene silicone pilot plant was established.

In 1943, Dow combined with Corning glass and established the world-famous Dow-Corning Chemical. They built the synthetic Poly siloxane factory in Midland. And soon they developed DC4 ignition sealing material, which was applied on aerial aircraft in World War II. Then Dow Corning Chemical gradually became one of the world’s largest professional manufacturers of silicone products.

In the past 20 years, the application of silicone technology has achieved a brilliant level. Room temperature vulcanized silicone rubber and silane coupling agents got comprehensive development. Silicone polymer for biological and medical use also emerged. Now, many more silicone compounds were invented for a wide application. Many impossible things can be realized now due to the development of silicone material

 

From an annual output of 10,000 tons in 1997 to about 850,000 tons per year in 2015, methyl chlorosilane has a rapid development, which is top among all the monomers. In the future, with methyl chlorosilane production capacity increasing, the organic silicon industry will have further development in technology, with both capacity and quality getting onto a new level.

chemical plant

How is the impact of power limit on the chemical industry

Recently, the Dual Control System of Total Energy Consumption and Energy Intensity has lit a Red Light in many provinces of China. The provinces named by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology have taken measures to solve the energy consumption problem since there are only 4 months to the year’s end. Guangdong, Jiangsu, and other major chemical provinces made strict policies to limit using of electricity and limit production to thousands of enterprises. Why there are energy limits and production limits? What impacts will it have on China’s chemical industry?

Many provinces pull the plug, cut the power, and limit the production

Recently, many provinces such as Jiangsu, Guangdong, Yunnan, Qinghai, Ningxia, Henan, Chongqing, Guangxi, Sichuan, Inner Mongolia, Heilongjiang, and others started to carry out power control measures for dual-energy consumption to meet control targets. Electricity restriction measure has gradually spread from the central and western regions of China to the eastern Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta, etc.

Henan: The electricity limit will be for more than three weeks for some processing enterprises

Sichuan: Suspension of non-necessary production load, lighting load, and office load.

Chongqing: Some factories cut power and stopped production in early August.

Inner Mongolia: The electricity price would be increased by not more than 10%.

Qinghai: An early warning of the power limit is announced, and the area of the power limit continues to expand.

Ningxia: The power for high-level energy-consuming enterprises will be limited for a month.

Shaanxi: The power limit will be extended to the end of the year. Yulin city will limit the production of dual high enterprises to the level of 50-60%,

Yunnan: Two rounds of power limit have been launched. The average monthly output of industrial silicon from September to December shall be limited to less than 10% of August output (i.e., 90% reduction); the average monthly output of yellow phosphorus shall be limited to 10% of August 2021 output (i.e., 90% reduction).

Guangxi: Guangxi has introduced new dual control measures, requiring enterprises with the production of electrolytic aluminum, aluminum oxide, steel, and cement to limit their production starting from September

Shandong: there is a power limit of 9 hours daily, mainly from 15:00-24:00, the shortcoming time continued to September, and the power limit measures would be implemented

Jiangsu: In early September, the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology carried out special energy conservation supervision for enterprises with more than 50,000 tons of standard coal annually. In the cluster area of printing and dyeing, more than 1,000 enterprises will produce for two days and stop production for two days.

Zhejiang: Production will be stopped for the key energy-consuming enterprises until September 30.

Anhui: There is a power shortage of 2.5 million kilowatts, and it is decided to start an orderly electricity consumption plan from September 22.

Guangdong: From September 16, the electricity plan work for two days and stopped for 5 days was implemented

Reasons for a power cut and production limit or shutdown

 

In essence, the power cut is due to the shortage of coal and power. The national coal output is almost the same in as 2019, but the power generation is increasing. The coal inventory of various power plants is significantly in recent years. The reasons behind the coal shortage are as follows:

1. In the early coal supply-side reform, open-air coal mines and some small coal mines with safety problems were closed. With good coal demand this year, the coal supply was quite tight.

2. The export is very good this year, and the electricity consumption from light industry enterprises and the low-end manufacturing industry is rising. But the power plants consume large amounts of coal. The high price of coal has increased the production cost of power plants, which makes power plants at a deficit.

3. The import of coal has changed from Australia to other countries. There is an increase in the import cost and global coal is also at a high price.

Following is a diagram oChina’sna coal output in recent years

Coal output

 

Why not expand the coal supply, but rather limit the power?

The total power generation in 2021 is not low. In the first half of the year, 20-year earnings generated 3,871.7 billion kilowatt-hours, which is twice that of the United States. Meanwhile, China’s export has increased extremely rapidly this year.

 

According to the data released by the General Administration of Customs, China’s total import and export of foreign trade reached 3.43 trillion yuan in August, up by 18.9% compared to 2020. And the positive growth has been last for 15 consecutive months in the first eight months of 2021, China’s total imports and exports reached 24.78 trillion yuan, up by 23.7% year on year and 22.8% over the same period in 2019.

 

The reason for the export increase is that affected by the epidemic, the production in many countries is not normal, so the production task in China increases. With the increase in export, the demand for raw materials also increased. The import of commodities products also soared. From the end of 2020, the increase in steel price is caused by the price increase of iron ore and iron fine powder which are imported from other countries. The main production means in the manufacturing industry are raw materials and electricity. With the production task increases, China’s electricity demand continues to increase. Why not expand the coal supply, but instead limit electricity? On the one hand, the demand for power generation is increasing, while the cost of power generation is also increasing. Since the beginning of 2021, the supply and demand of domestic coal continues to be tight. The price of thermal coal is high during the low season. Coal prices have risen sharply and maintained a high level. With the high price, the production and sales costs of power enterprises are seriously inverted. And the operating pressure of power enterprises is prominent. According to the data of CLP, the unit cost of standard coal for large power generation groups has increased by 50.5% year on year. But the electricity price has remained the same. The loss of coal power enterprises was significantly increased, and the whole industry is at the loss. It is estimated that the loss of every power generation will exceed 0.1 yuan for every 1 watt. And 100 million kilowatts will lose at least 10 million yuan. For large power generation enterprises, their monthly loss will be over 10000 million yuan. On the one hand, the coal price remains high, on the other hand, the price of electricity is controlled by the government. So, it is difficult for power plants to have a balance. Thus, some power plants would rather generate less electricity. On the other hand, achieving the completion of industrial transformation requirements is urgent. China has to eliminate backward production capacity and implement supply-side reform. To realize the dual-carbon target and environmental protection need, as well as another important aim which is to realize industrial transformation. This is to change from traditional energy-cost production to emerging energy-saving production. In recent years, China has been working to reach this goal. But from last year, due to the epidemic, the demand and task of high energy-consuming products under high have increased. With the epidemic raging and global manufacturing stalled, large manufacturing orders are returning to the mainland. This leads to high consumption of power in the first 3 quarters of 2021. Also, the price of raw materials, which price is dominated by international capital has soared in 2021 leading to a high production cost. In addition, for domestic and global environmental protection, China will need efficient production capacity in the future. To reduce the energy consumption and carbon emissions of traditional industries, large-scale technological innovation and device transformation are needed. Thus, in short term, achieving the dual control goal, power, and production limit is a way for traditional industries to achieve the goal. In addition, the inflation risks can be prevented tons a certain degree with the high soaring global price of iron, copper, oil, grain, and beans.

 

The Chinese government has been working hard for dual control of energy consumption for environmental protection. Due to the orders back to China from the inning of 2021, the busy production has totaled a high-power consumption which is out of the excitation. After the review for the first 3 quarters, the energy consumption in many provinces is much higher. The consumption for the last 3 quarters already reaches the amount for the whole year.   The main energy-consuming projects are mainly in six industries, including petrochemical, coal power, chemical, steel, and non-ferrous metal smelting building materials. With the over-consumed energy and power, many provinces have adopted the production and power limit policy and these lead to the enterprises feeling unprepared.

 

What is the effect on the different industries?

 

With the background of sudden power and production limit from provincial governments, the chemical industry index has a sharp rise, different chemical raw materials have soared in price, and many related stock-listed companies also have the daily raising limit frequently. According to the Business agency, the chemical index was 1137 on September 1 and 1262 on September 30. This is a record high in the cycle.  Compared with the lowest point of 598 points on Apri08, 202020, the index has risen by 111.04%. (Note: Period to 2011-12-01 till)

 

The new high price in the chemical industry is mainly due to the dual control and power restriction policy. As there are 9 provinces and autonomous regions whose energy consumption was much up in the first 3 quarter year on year! And another 10 provinces’ energy consumption reduction rate cannot meet the requirements. This means the target of dual control is not reached in the first half year. So, every province has the heavy task to take new measures to ensure the realization of the whole year’s target.

In 2020, due to COVID-19, global economic activities have been greatly affected. the poor demand leads to the low prices of crude oil and bulk chemicals downstream. While in 2021, with the gradual control of the epidemic and recovery of global business, education has recovered much, and demand also increase. As per the monitoring industry data of the business agency, it can be seen that the price of many chemical sub-industries has increased in 2021, and some are up by more than 100% year on year.

 

As per the data, the price of 79 kinds of products in the chemical sector increased on September 2 with 021, 57 of them increasing more than 5%. the top three commodities with price increases were phosphate (161.44%), yellow phosphorus (108.70%,) and caustic soda (90.00%).

There were 18 products with price declines, and 6 products down by more than 5%. The top 3 declines were butadiene (-33.32%), butanol (industrial grade) (-33.62%), and Iso octanol (-30.90%).

 

Product Industry Early Sep., price Late Sep., price Unit Monthly increase or decrease
Phosphoric acid Chemical 1195.3125 3125 USD/MT 161.44%
Yellow Phosphorus Chemical 4492.1875 9375 USD/MT 108.70%
Caustic Soda Chemical 101.5625 192.96875 USD/MT 90%
DMC(Silicone) Chemical 5859.375 9890.625 USD/MT 68.80%
R134A Chemical 3489.53125 5755.15625 USD/MT 64.93%
Silicone Adjuvant Chemical 5300 8700 USD/MT 64.15%
Acetic anhydride Chemical 1507.8125 2335.9375 USD/MT 54.92%
Epichlorohydrin Chemical 2260.3125 3317.65625 USD/MT 46.77%
Acrylic Acid Chemical 2307.1875 2869.6875 USD/MT 24.36%
Propylene Glycol Chemical 2666.5625 3296.875 USD/MT 23.63%
Rutile Titanium Dioxide Chemical 3050 3200 USD/MT 4.92%

 

In September, the price of phosphorus chemical price has reached a ten-year high. Except the phosphorus ammonium market remains stable at a high price, phosphate and phosphate ore have a sharp increase after yellow phosphorus. Under the dual control policy, yellow phosphorus-related enterprises have serious limits in electricity and production capacity, thus the tight market supply situation cannot be changed in a short time. But till the end of September, most phosphorus chemical products have risen to a high level. Downstream enterprises need to be more cautious for take in new raw materials. In general, there could be a certain pullback in the phosphorus chemical, but in a short time, it may remain at a high price.

 

Besides phosphorous chemicals, the acetic acid industry also has a big increase in September. The price of acetate products rose by 47.69%. Its upstream raw material methanol has increased by 37.86%. And downstream acetic anhydride by 54.92%, EVA increased by 38.82%, ethyl acetate by 25.23%, and PTA by 3.49%. Affected by the dual control policy, many acetic acid industry chain enterprises have stopped production and price has increased much. After the China National Holiday, with the production recovery in October, the supply and demand of the acetate industry chain have been eased. According to the statistics of the production plan of the acetic industry, the supply growth in October is expected to be more than the growth of demand, and the price of the acetate industry is expected to drop some in October.

 

In addition, the price of the Chlor-alkali sector in the chemical industry has also increased, with caustic soda rising by 90% in September, calcium carbide by 39.45%, PVC by 34.45%, and soda by 34.05%. With the dual control policy, the production capacity of the chlorine-alkali industry in October is expected to be relatively low. With the relatively tight supply and the high price of raw materials, it is expected that the prices of soda, caustic soda, and baking soda would be stable at a high level. The actual situation will be depended on the demand.

 

Besides the basic chemical, chemical products such as organic pigments (Pigment Red 122, Pigment Violet 19, Pigment Yellow 74, Pigment Yellow 12), Anatase titanium Dioxide, Silicone leveling agents, Dimethicone, and optical brighteners all have price increases at different ranges.

 

The recent large-scale power restriction would have a big impact on the manufacturing industry, and long-term environmental protection policies still exist, the price rise of commodity prices will be transmitted downstream, which will squeeze the profit and living space of the downstream enterprise. In addition, the control of the high energy consumption industry is a long-term trend, so the short-term policy will only affect the production limit time and the trend for energy saving will not be changed. Therefore, with the inflation risk in the fourth quarter, the traditionally high-demanded months will lead to a further price increase of chemical products. in the background of a global energy shortage, product prices have e rising trend, but the height of the chemical market would be subject to the demand situation.