China's demand for thermoplastic elastomers will continue to grow

Thermoplastic Polyolefin Elastomer (TPO/TPV) A type of thermoplastic elastomer that is blended with ethylene propylene rubber (EPM) or ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) and a polyolefin resin. material. According to the processing technology, thermoplastic polyolefin elastomers can be divided into three categories: mechanical blending (TPO), reactor synthesis (TPO), and thermoplastics (TPV). Due to its good mechanical properties and weather resistance, thermoplastic polyolefin elastomers have been widely used in automobiles, electronic and electrical appliances, building materials, machinery, and sports equipment.

At present, the annual production of TPO/TPV in the world is about 1 million tons, and the production areas are mainly concentrated in the developed countries and regions such as the United States, Western Europe and Japan. Major U.S. TPO/TPV producers benefit Ander Basell, Solvay Engineered Polymers, Teknor Apex, BP, ExxonMobil, AES; major producers in Western Europe are AES, LyondellBasell, and DSM; Japan The larger TPO producers are Mitsubishi Chemical, Sumitomo Chemical and Mitsui Chemicals.

The annual consumption of TPO/TPV in the world is about 1 million tons, of which the United States, Japan and Western Europe account for about 80%. The consumption of TPO/TPV in the above three countries and regions is composed of 68.2% for auto parts, 21.4% for industrial applications, 7.2% for consumer goods, and 3.2% for electrical and electronics.

1. Domestic product quality needs to be improved:

China's TPO/TPV development and application is late. With the introduction of more and more car production lines and the continuous increase in the localization rate of auto parts, the demand for TPO/TPV for auto parts has been increasing. In recent years, China has successively successfully developed the TPO process technology for the mechanical blending method, built more than 10 sets of 1,000-ton pilot plant, and has included the development of the TPV project for full dynamic production into the national “863” plan. Research institutes and institutes of Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Qingdao Institute of Chemical Technology, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Sichuan University, and other universities and research institutes have achieved preliminary results.

In 2004, Shandong Daun Group adopted the technology of Beijing University of Chemical Technology to establish a dynamic full-scale production line of 3,000 tons/year of high-performance TPV. The product quality is equivalent to foreign companies. At present, the production capacity of the Tween Group's TPV has been expanded to 5,000 tons/year, and in 2010, a one-ton/year TPV production line will be built.

Currently, there are 8 to 10 TPV plants in China, including Shandong Dao'en Beihua Elastic Materials Co., Ltd., Nanjing Jinling Aopu Te Polymer Materials Co., Ltd., Sichuan Chenguang Kexin Plastics Co., Ltd., Ezhou Efeng Rubber & Plastics Co., Ltd., and Dalian Kemengxin. Materials company, Zhangjiagang Meite Polymer Materials Co., Ltd., Sanbo Polymer Alloy Ningbo Co., Ltd., each company has a production capacity of 200-3,000 tons/year and a total production capacity of approximately 10,000 tons/year. However, the vast majority of domestic TPV product quality is still far from the high requirements of the automotive and other industries, especially in terms of the balance between high liquidity and high flexibility.

2. The demand will grow rapidly:

The annual consumption of TPO/TPV in China is about 100,000 tons, of which TPO consumption is about 65,000 to 75,000 tons, and TPV consumption is 20,000 to 30,000 tons. The consumption of TPO/TPV in China is composed of 60% in the automotive industry, mainly used as bumpers, fenders, dashboards, etc. for automobiles; 21% in the field of building structures; 11% in electronics and electronics; and 8% in other fields.

Automotive: The largest application area of ​​TPO/TPV is the auto parts manufacturing industry, which can meet the requirements of different products through various processing methods (extrusion, co-extrusion, injection molding, etc.). Currently, the most widely used is EPDM/ PP and NBR/PP are two major categories. With the development of high performance (high speed, safety, comfort, energy saving, and environmental protection), long life, and lightweight development of automobiles, the tendency of TPO/TPV to replace traditional thermosetting *plastics in auto parts, especially automobile sealing systems, engine systems, etc. The faster you come.

TPO/TPV is mainly used in automotive sealing systems for windshield seals, side reflector seals, awning sealing materials, etc.; applications in automotive engine systems include air vents, hoses, protective covers, shock mounts Pads, bushings, etc. It can also be applied to other automotive parts such as brake parts (cups, aprons) and silencer parts. In particular, the development of functional TPO/TPV has further expanded its application in the field of automotive systems. At present, EPDM/PP-type TPO/TPV is replacing traditional thermosetting *plastics at an annual growth rate of 16% in the field of car applications.

China's auto industry is in a period of rapid development. In 2009, China’s auto production reached 13.791 million units, and sales reached 13.645 million vehicles. Production and sales volume ranked first in the world. Obviously, with the development of China's economy and the further increase of social income, it has become a trend that automobiles have become mainstream consumer products in China's well-to-do society. With the further growth of automobile production and sales volume, the demand for TPO/TPV in the automotive sector in China will further increase.

At the same time, the global automotive industry has made demands on the recyclability of the entire vehicle and has begun to enforce the international standards of using TPO/TPV instead of thermosetting rubber materials. For example, the EU Parliament and the Council promulgated the 2000/53/EC end-of-life vehicle recycling directive in September 2000, which stipulates that by the year 2006, at least 85% (mass fraction) of each end-of-life vehicle in EU member states can be reused. The recovery rate is at least 80%; in 2015, these two indicators will be increased to 95% and 85% respectively. Japan officially implemented the "Automobile Recycling Law" from January 1, 2005, requiring automakers to be responsible for receiving, recycling, and properly handling freons, airbags, and automobile debris from scrapped vehicles. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is responsible for formulating relevant laws and regulations for the automobile recycling industry. At present, 95% of the used cars in the United States are recycled. The quality of the parts that are reused on each recycling car exceeds approximately 75% of the vehicle's total mass. Visible thermoplastic polyolefins have broad application prospects.

Construction industry: The construction industry is also an important application area of ​​TPO/TPV. TPO/TPV sealing materials are gradually being considered as the first choice for sealing materials such as doors, windows, and skylights around the world. With the development of aluminum doors and windows of high-end buildings, the molding of office furniture, seals used in trains, ships, aircraft doors and windows, and container seals, etc., the development of TPO/TPV in place of traditional building seal materials will become Trends in the world today.

Electronic products: In the field of industrial application of electronic products, EPDM/PP type TPO/TPV can be used as control material for cable, marine cable and mine cables for kilovolts or more, replacing the original neoprene, natural rubber. / SBR, chlorosulfonated polyethylene and PVC coating materials. At present, some of China's large-scale cable factories have introduced advanced cable production technology and equipment from abroad, and their production efficiency and product quality have greatly improved. The technological improvement of the wire and cable industry will greatly expand the application of TPO/TPV.

Others: In addition, TPO/TPV is also a key material for solving high-speed train noise problems, which can greatly improve the comfort of high-speed trains; TPO/TPV with high hardness, high toughness, and anti-ultraviolet aging has also been successfully used in highway separation belts to give high speeds. Roads lead to a safer driving environment; blended TPOs are used for waterproofing coils and can solve the serious environmental pollution caused by a large amount of organic binders during the construction process of EPDM rubber waterproofing membranes and waterproofing at seams of coils. The problem of low sealing reliability, prolongs the service life of key engineering facilities, and significantly reduces the cost of renovation. With the gradual development of the country’s large-scale infrastructure, the use of TPO will increase rapidly. It is estimated that by 2010, the domestic demand for TPO will reach 100,000 tons.

3. The shortage of raw materials is expected to improve:

The main raw materials of TPO/TPV are EPDM and PP. Over the years, EPDM in China has only one supplier for Jilin Chemical. Until 2009, its production capacity has been maintained at 20,000 tons/year. The lack of raw materials has severely constrained the development of domestic TPO/TPV. application. It is reported that in addition to the currently planned 50,000-ton/year project under construction in Jilin, China Mitsui Chemicals and Japan Mitsui Chemicals' 75,000-ton/year project to be built in Shanghai, there are several new EDPM projects to be built in China, and it is expected that by 2015 The domestic EPDM production capacity is expected to reach 160,000 to 200,000 tons/year, which will lay a solid raw material foundation for the development of TPO/TPV in China.