Development history of global acrylic acid industry
The development of the global acrylic acid industry has gone through the period of production process development (mid-19th century-mid-20th century), production process maturity (1950s-70s) and commercial application period (1980s-2020), until today It has entered the fourth stage: process innovation period (2020-present). With the development of the chemical industry, improving the degradability of plastic and rubber products has become a topic of concern to the global industry. In 2020, ADM of the United States and LG Chem of South Korea will jointly explore the production of bio-based acrylic acid, and use ADM corn processing raw materials to produce 100% bio-based acrylic acid to achieve economically feasible commercial production.
Supply and demand of the global acrylic acid industry
Since 2012, the global acrylic acid industry has experienced a period of rapid capacity expansion, of which 88% of new capacity was in Asia. But at the same time, overcapacity has seriously suppressed the profitability of manufacturers, and the operating rate of the entire industry has dropped from 87% to 71%, which has led to a significant reduction in subsequent new capacity and a decline in output. According to Statista data, the global production of acrylic acid will fluctuate and increase from 2015 to 2021, reaching 7.65 million tons in 2021, a year-on-year increase of 5.37%.
According to data from China Chemical Industry News, about 60% of global acrylic acid production capacity comes from Northeast Asia, of which China accounts for about 38%; North America accounts for 15%; Europe accounts for 16%. From the perspective of major global production companies, BASF has the largest acrylic acid production capacity, reaching 1.5 million tons per year, followed by Arkema with 1.08 million tons per year, and Nippon Shokubai with 0.88 million tons per year. In April 2022, Idemitsu Kosan, a veteran Japanese petrochemical giant, stated that due to the expansion of acrylic acid production in Asia in recent years, the market has oversupplied, and out of business strategy considerations, it will stop the 50,000 tons/year acrylic acid production of the Aichi Refinery before March 2023 The operation of the plant, and exit the acrylic product business, and outsource the butyl acrylate production project.
From the perspective of global demand, China Chemical Industry News predicts that the global consumption of acrylic acid will maintain an average annual growth rate of 3.5-4% in 2020-2025, and the consumption growth rate of acrylic acid in Asian developing countries represented by China is as high as 6%. Mainly driven by the strong demand for SAP and acrylates, the downstream products of acrylic acid.
Global Acrylic Acid Industry Market Segment Analysis
Acrylic acid is one of the most versatile monomers, primarily used as a building block for a wide variety of polymer formulations. In the subdivision of acrylic acid in 2020, acrylates accounted for the largest proportion, accounting for 43%, followed by super absorbent polymers (SAP), accounting for 46%. In 2021, the proportion of acrylate will increase, reaching 48.4%, and the proportion of super absorbent polymer (SAP) will decrease, accounting for 43%. Downstream applications of Super Absorbent Polymers (SAP) are mainly personal care products. The water treatment field basically maintains a 5% share.
Post time: May-10-2023