Carbon Fiber Market – Analysis of Status & Prospects

By Huang Zecui, Dai Jun, Sichuan Meifeng Chemical Co., Ltd.

Carbon fiber is special fibers with carbon content of over 90%, high strength, high modulus and heat resistance. It is produced through pre-oxidization and carbonization using polyacrylonitrile, bitumen and viscose fiber as raw yarns. When substituted for traditional aluminum alloy in a product, structural weight can be reduced by 30%. Carbon fiber has been extensively used in aviation/spaceflight, sports, industry, construction, energy, medical care and health in recent years.
The scale of the carbon fiber sector in China is still small, output is quite low and the industrial chain could be improved. At the end of 2014 China hosted nearly 40 carbon fiber producers, with a combined capacity of 19.6 kt/a. Output in 2014 was only 3.2 kt, falling far short of domestic demand. Eighty five percent of the domestic demand has to be satisfied by imports. China’s capacity to make polyacrylonitrile-based carbon fiber is around 15 kt/a today, according to data provided by China Chemical Fiber Industry Association, but the capacity is rather scattered geographically, firms are small and overall output is quite low. Table 1 shows the output of carbon fiber in China during 2010-2014.
The firms with the biggest capacity are Jiangsu Hengshen Carbon Material Co., Ltd., Zhongfu Shenying Carbon Fiber Co., Ltd., Weihai Tuozhan Fiber Co., Ltd., China National BlueStar (Group) Co., Ltd., PetroChina Jilin Chemical Industrial Co., Ltd., Shanxi Gangke Carbon Material Co., Ltd. and Jilin Carbon Co., Ltd. Most enterprises engaged in R&D, production and equipment manufacturing for carbon fiber composites are producers of sports/leisure supplies. Only a little more than 10 enterprises are doing R&D and production of high-end carbon fiber composites for aviation/spaceflight.
Most of China’s carbon fiber products are distributed in medium/low-end application sectors. The market is already saturated, and the profit margin is low. In this country, carbon fiber is used mainly in making sports/leisure supplies, golf clubs and fishing rods; more specifically, 80% for sports/leisure supplies, only 2% for aviation/spaceflight and only 18% for other industrial uses.
The consumption of carbon fiber in China was around 13.75 kt in 2014. It is expected that the annual growth of the carbon fiber consumption will be over 10% in the next few years. There will be huge development opportunities in the future.
China has to import great quantities of high-end carbon fiber materials and products. The total import volume of carbon fiber materials and products is around 10 kt a year. In 2014, the import volume of carbon fiber and related products was 11.7 kt, a drop of 8.5% from the previous year, and the import value was US$370 million, slightly lower than in the previous year, according to statistical data from Chinese Customs. With the increased domestic output of carbon fiber, the low-end carbon fiber market is dominated by domestic products.
The national government strengthened support of the development of carbon fiber during 2011-2015. To guide development in the next five years, the national government has issued the Thirteenth Five-Year Development Plan for the Fiber Composite Sector, according to which government support for the sector in terms of new materials will be strengthened, R&D and production of carbon fiber will be intensified and market scale will be expanded.
The main development trends in industrial applications will be concrete structure reinforcement, domestic big plane commercialization, light-weight automobiles and wind power generation.


Table 1    Output of carbon fiber in China, 2010-2014       (ton)

Year    2010    2011    2012    2013    2014
Output    1 220    1 580    2 020    2 650    3 200


(1) Construction
Carbon fiber concrete structure reinforcement materials are used to fasten and repair concrete structures. They mainly include carbon fiber materials and matching resins. Owing to their great strength, effectiveness, corrosion resistance, convenient application and stable structural size, they have gained extensive application in construction projects.
(2) Civil industries
The manufacture of light-weight automobiles and big planes will stimulate a rapid growth of carbon fiber consumption. Great quantities of carbon fiber are already used in bodies and interior/exterior trim of automobiles. Using carbon fiber materials in auto manufacturing can reduce a car’s weight by over 40%. With the development of low-cost technologies such as ＞48k fiber and RTM, carbon fiber composites have gained more and more applications in automobiles. Using carbon fiber composites in the main wings, horizontal/vertical tails, beams, decorative materials and board materials of planes greatly reduces the structural weight of planes, improves the planes’ performance and minimizes fuel consumption. Carbon fiber materials used in light-weight automobiles and big planes are high-end materials, and their development will push rapid upgrading of the sector.
(3) Energy
Wind power generation, with its inherent environmental benefits, has attracted great attention today. Fiberglass and carbon fiber composites with their high durability, light weight and great strength are preferred materials for turbine blades. Each year during 2010-2020, China plans to add 1 933 MW of wind turbine generator systems. Twenty five thousand large-volume wind turbines will be needed in the market in 2020. When the capacity of a wind turbine generator is over 3 MW and the length of the blade is over 40 m, carbon fiber is a must.
(4) Others
New fuel cells, extraction platforms for abyssal oilfields and various pressure vessels are other applications of high-end carbon fiber.
Source:《Fine and Specialty Chemicals》