Competitive Edge of MBS Needs to be Improved

MBS (methyl methacrylate-butadiene-styrene copolymer) is one of
the popular impact resistance modifiers for PVC (polyvinyl
chloride). It can improve the appearance of PVC products and
therefore is the optimum material for the production of
transparent PVC products. MBS-modified PVC products have
partially replaced glass and polyester products in the packaging
of mineral water, edible oils and cosmetics.

Insufficient output

The total capacity of MBS in the world (excluding China) was
around 400 thousand t/a in 2005 and the output was around 230
thousand tons. Rohm and Haas of the United States and Kanegafuchi,
Kureha and Mitsubishi of Japan are major MBS producers in the
world.
   The total capacity of MBS in China was 49 thousand t/a in 2005,
the output was around 25 thousand tons and the consumption
reached around 35 thousand tons. There is a considerable supply
deficit and imported products mainly come from Japan. There are
10 major MBS producers in China including the Research Institute
of Shandong Qilu Petrochemical Company Ltd., Shanghai
Pen-Making Chemical Plant, Wanda Group Co., Ltd., Zhejiang
Longhua Plastic Additives Co., Ltd., Yiyuan Ruifeng High
Molecular Weight Material Co., Ltd., Dandong Decheng Chemical
Co., Ltd., Jilin Chemical Industrial Group Corp., Weihai Jinhong
Chemical Industry Group Co., Ltd., Shanghai Gaohua Synthetic
Resin Plant and Foshan Huahao Chemical Co., Ltd. Electrochemical
Plant. The Research Institute of Qilu Petrochemical Company Ltd.
holds a leading position in the development of MBS resin impact
resistance modifiers and a large production unit has already
been constructed. Zhejiang Longhua Plastic Additives Co., Ltd.
is the MBS producer with the most complete product varieties.
Properties of some varieties produced in the company are already
close to similar products in Kanegafuchi and Kureha.

Stable demand increase

With the accelerated development of the plastic processing
industry, the demand of MBS in China will still increase stably
in future. It is expected that the demand of MBS in China will
reach 50 thousand tons in 2010 with an average annual growth of
7.5%.

    (1) Rapid development of the PVC product sector
The consumption growth of PVC has stimulated the development of
impact resistance modifiers in China. The apparent consumption
of PVC in China was 7.92 million tons in 2005 and will reach 9.05
million tons in 2010. The demand of MBS as one of the popular
impact resistance modifiers for PVC will surely increase.

    (2) Accelerated readjustment of impact resistance modifiers
MBS will become a major impact resistance modifier in future.
Major impact resistance modifiers in order of consumption are
ACR (acrylates), MBS and EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer)
in foreign countries but CPE (chlorinated polyethylene), ACR and
MBS in China. CPE is a product with low effect and has surplus
capacity in China. The development of ACR and MBS with excellent
comprehensive properties is lagging behind in China. The
consumption proportion of MBS, in particular, is on the low side.

    (3) Constant expansion of MBS application sectors
Consumption sectors for MBS have gradually developed from rigid
products to semi-rigid and flexible products in recent years.
For example, the consumption of MBS in semi-rigid products and
film materials for food packaging has occupied a considerable
proportion in Germany. The application of MBS in exterior wall
coatings also started to increase drastically in the United
States. MBS resin in China is only used in PVC transparent sheets,
films and transparent bottles. The consumption in other sectors
needs to be developed.
   With the accelerate development of the plastic processing
industry, the demand of MBS in China will still grow rapidly in
future. The MBS sector in China, however, has low technical level,
poor product quality, small production scale and high
comprehensive cost. It is therefore imperative for the MBS
sector in China to upgrade the technical level, enlarge the
production scale, increase the operating rate and further
enhance its competitive edge.