(1) Overview of global development of fumed silica: fumed silica, also known as fumed silica, is an amorphous nanoscale white powder with surface hydroxyl generated from silicon halides (mainly methyltrichlorosilane and silicon tetrachloride, and a few enterprises use trichlorosilane) by high-temperature hydrolysis in hydrogen oxygen flame. At the beginning of the 20th century, with the rapid development of the rubber industry worldwide, the reinforcing filler of the rubber industry was mainly zinc oxide. In the 1920s, with the successful trial production of Carbon Black, a new era of rubber reinforcement was created. The mechanical properties of rubber were greatly improved by using carbon black for rubber reinforcement. However, the biggest disadvantage of carbon black is that it is a black powder, Its color attribute determines that carbon black cannot be used to prepare light color or color rubber products. In the 1940s, German Degussa Company successfully developed the process of preparing fumed silica by hydrolysis of silicon tetrachloride in hydrogen oxygen flame at high temperature. With the appearance of fumed silica products, rubber and silicone rubber products were endowed with excellent tensile strength and tear strength, breaking the situation of black rubber monopolizing the market.
Gaseous silica is produced by hydrolysis of chlorosilane in hydrogen and oxygen flame at high temperature to generate silica particles, and then through aggregation, separation, deacidification and other treatment processes to obtain the product. In the 1960s and 1970s, fumed silica was mainly made from silicon tetrachloride. The production process was easy to control, but the production cost was high. With the development of organic silicon monomer industry, the treatment of its by-products, such as methyl trichlorosilane, has become a bottleneck restricting its development. Usually, methyl trichlorosilane is used in the manufacture of silane crosslinker, silicone Resin and waterproof coating. However, due to the limited amount, it is in urgent need of finding a new way out. By the 1980s, the process of preparing fumed silica by using organic silicon monomer by-product or mixing the by-product with silicon tetrachloride was breakthrough and applied, and the production cost of fumed silica by organic silicon monomer by-product was effectively reduced.
According to the data, the global production capacity of fumed silica in 2021 will be 458900 tons/year, with a year-on-year increase of 3.20%. All the new production capacity will come from China. In combination with the announced plan, considering the possibility of new projects being put into production and the elimination of some backward production capacity, it is estimated that the global production capacity will still increase by 89900 tons/year to about 568800 tons/year by 2026. The average annual growth rate of global production capacity is expected to be 3.60% from 2022 to 2026.
In 2021, the global output of fumed silica will be about 324000 tons, with a year-on-year increase of 8.00%. The average annual growth rate of global output in 2017-2021 is 4.60%. The global output of fumed silica will reach 399000 tons in 2026, and the annual average growth rate of global output will be about 4.50% from 2022 to 2026.
(2) Overview of domestic fumed silica development: China's fumed silica industry started late. After World War II, the fumed silica industry achieved commercialization and large-scale development, but the whole industry was oligopoly. The core technology of the industry was blocked and monopolized by a few multinational companies. In the 1960s, China began to produce fumed silica on a small scale, The core technology and market for the preparation of fumed silica are mainly controlled by Germany, the United States and Japan. China urgently needs high-quality fumed silica product enterprises with independent intellectual property rights to carry out technology research and development, and break the situation of foreign technology blockade and product monopoly. In the early 1990s, with the rise of a large number of private silicone downstream deep processing enterprises, the market demand for fumed silica grew rapidly, and a small number of domestic enterprises began to continue to tackle the key problems of fumed silica production process technology. In 2001, the first fumed silica plant in China with methyltrichlorosilane as raw material was successfully ignited, With the continuous improvement of production capacity and process technology of some domestic fumed silica manufacturers in the following ten years, the quality and supply of Hydrophilic fumed silica products of domestic enterprises have reached or approached the level of foreign manufacturers. China has become one of the few countries in the world that can independently produce fumed silica products except Germany, the United States and Japan.
After long-term development, the technology of fumed silica in China has made great progress. From 2010 to 2021, the production capacity and output of fumed silica in China will show a steady upward trend. By 2021, the production capacity of fumed silica in China will be 178800 tons/year, accounting for 39.00% of the global total capacity; The output is about 128400 tons, accounting for 39.60% of the global output. From 2017 to 2021, the average annual growth rate of China's fumed silica production capacity was 7.20%.
② The market share of domestic enterprises occupies the main position: by 2021, there will be 5 foreign and joint venture entrepreneurs engaged in the production of fumed silica in China, and the production capacity of foreign and joint ventures will be 62000 tons in 2021; There are 17 domestic entrepreneurs engaged in the production of fumed silica in China, and the capacity of domestic enterprises will be 115800 tons in 2021. From the perspective of the nature of China's fumed silica production enterprises, China's domestic fumed silica enterprises have gradually gained certain advantages in the competition with foreign brands.
③ Consumption structure: In 2021, the total consumption of fumed silica in China will be about 113100 tons, with a year-on-year growth of 13.10%. The main use of fumed silica is as a reinforcing agent for silicone elastomer. The silicone industry is the main consumption field of fumed silica, in which the use of silicone rubber accounted for more than 60% of its total consumption. In addition, it is also used in other silicone products, such as silicone resin; The paint and ink industry is the second largest consumption area of fumed silica in China; In the adhesive, composite materials, chemical mechanical polishing industry, the application of fumed silica also maintained a rapid growth. In addition, the demand for fumed silica in colloidal batteries, defoamers, Sewage Treatment, agriculture, cosmetics, food, medicine, thermal insulation materials and other fields also shows an increasing trend.
④ Import and export: Since 2011, China has become a net exporter of fumed silica. Over the years, China's imports and exports of fumed silica have maintained a steady growth. In 2019 and 2020, due to the increasingly tense international trade environment and the continuous production of overseas production capacity, the import and export volume has declined to a certain extent. With the continuous improvement of production technology and expansion of production capacity of China's fumed silica enterprises, domestic fumed silica products are gradually favored by overseas customers. By virtue of the advantages of China's enterprises' production costs, China's fumed silica products will have been exported to more than 70 countries and regions in 2021, with South Korea, Japan, the United States, the United Arab Emirates, India and Indonesia as the main export regions. In 2021, China's imports of fumed silica will still mainly come from Japan, Belgium, Germany and other countries and regions, of which the imports from Japan and Belgium will account for 58.60% and 21.10% of China's imports respectively.
In 2021, China's imports and exports of fumed silica will be 4700 tons and 20000 tons respectively, and its net exports will be 15300 tons in 2021, a year-on-year increase of 40.40%. As China has more new capacity (including drainage) in the future, and major multinational companies have established gas-phase silica production plants in China, it is expected that China's imports of gas-phase silica will continue to shrink slightly by 2026, and its exports are expected to grow rapidly.
(3) Global market overview: In 2021, the global apparent consumption of fumed silica will be about 324,000 tons, with a year-on-year growth of 8.00%. In 2021, the main consumption fields of fumed silica in the world will be organic silicon, synthetic resin, ink coatings, adhesives, sealants and other industries. In addition, there will be considerable consumption in chemical mechanical polishing (CMP), medicine, food, agriculture, cosmetics and other fields. According to the prediction of CICC Qixin, the global demand for fumed silica will reach 33900 tons in 2022, and the consumption is expected to reach 404000 tons in 2026. The annual growth rate of global demand for fumed silica will be about 4.50% from 2022 to 2026.
From the perspective of the global consumption structure of fumed silica, the organic silicon industry is the main consumption field of fumed silica, with silicone rubber as the main one. Silicone rubber has good resistance to high and low temperatures, heat insulation, insulation, moisture, chemical corrosion, pollution and physiological inertia. It plays an irreplaceable role in many fields such as machinery manufacturing, architectural decoration, biomedicine, and is recognized as a new advanced synthetic material. The most important role of fumed silica in silicone rubber is reinforcement. The addition of fumed silica can significantly improve the strength and mechanical properties of silicone rubber products. In addition, it can improve the high temperature resistance and chemical resistance of silicone rubber, so that silicone rubber can be used in a wider range of fields.
(2) Domestic market overview: In 2021, China's total consumption of fumed silica will be about 113100 tons, with a year-on-year growth of 13.10%, including 77600 tons of organic silicon. Vapor phase silicon dioxide is mainly used as the reinforcing agent of silicone elastomer. At present, its use in the silicone rubber field accounts for more than 60% of its total consumption, and it is also used in other silicone products such as silicone resin; In addition, the application of fumed silica in the fields of paint and ink, adhesives, synthetic resins, chemical mechanical polishing, composite materials, colloidal batteries, defoamers, sewage treatment, agriculture, cosmetics, food, medicine, thermal insulation materials and other fields has also maintained continuous growth.
The organic silicon industry chain is composed of four links: basic raw materials, monomers, intermediates and deeply processed products. The basic raw materials for the production of organic silicon mainly include metal silicon, methanol, hydrogen chloride and other additives; Organic silicon monomer is mainly divided into methyl monomer and phenyl monomer, which is the foundation and pillar of the entire organic silicon industry; Organic silicon intermediates mainly include various siloxane rings, basic silicone oil, silicone rubber based polymers, etc. Vapor phase silicon dioxide is one of the important raw materials of organic silicon downstream deep processing products.
The most important users of fumed silica are silicone rubber enterprises. Silicone rubber is one of the most important silicone products with good resistance to high and low temperatures, heat insulation, insulation, moisture, chemical corrosion, pollution and physiological inertia. From the application field, silicone rubber is widely used in construction, automobile, electronics, energy and power, medical care, daily necessities and other fields. Silicone rubber can be divided into three main varieties: room temperature vulcanized silicone rubber (RTV), high temperature vulcanized silicone rubber (HTV), and liquid silicone rubber (LSR). The proportion of fumed silica in high-temperature and room temperature silicone rubber is generally about 5% - 40%, with a wide range, depending on the use of silicone rubber.
