40% of n-Propanol Is Imported

By Liu Liguo, Shandong Hualu-Hengsheng Chemical Co., Ltd.

Before 2012, China’s n-propanol capacity was only around 80 kt/a. With the completion of a 100 kt/a unit by Nanjing Nuoao New Material Co., Ltd., the supply increased somewhat. By the end of 2016, capacity had reached 213 kt/a. Table 1 shows the major n-propanol producers in China in 2016.
n-Propanol has extremely extensive applications. It can be used directly as solvent or used in the synthesis of n-propyl acetate for use in coating solvents, printing inks and cosmetics. It can also be used in the synthesis of medicines, pesticides, feed additives, synthetic flavors, plasticizers and cleaning agents. With the increased consumption of environment-friendly solvents, the market demand of n-propanol has grown steadily in recent years. Due to technology restrictions, however, capacity utilization is quite low, and great quantities are still imported each year. Import dependence has long been around 40%. Figure 1 shows the capacity, output, consumption and import/export of n-propanol in China in recent years.
n-Propanol is imported mainly from the United States, Taiwan and South Africa. As the price of raw material ethylene is low, imported products are quite competitive. Operation of domestic units is therefore constrained, and the imbalance of supply and demand is aggravated.
As olefin oxo synthesis is the production process for both n-propanol and n-butanol, n-butanol is used here for analysis and comparison. Table 2 shows the price trend of n-propanol and n-butanol in China in recent years.
Prices of large-volume chemicals have declined steadily in China in recent years. The price of n-butanol, in the face of capacity surplus, has dropped as if off a cliff, dipping near RMB4 000/t. n-Propanol prices are however always stable at RMB8 500-10 000/t.

Potential for market growth

Around 65% of the n-propanol used in China goes into making n-propyl acetate. n-Propyl acetate is a primary solvent for coatings with evident advantages and bright development prospects. It is hoped to boost demand growth for n-propanol.
High-end sectors such as the manufacture of medicines and pesticide intermediates use a very small proportion of n-propanol output. Gradual expansion of applications in such high-end sectors is also hoped to promote domestic demand for n-propanol.                   

Table 1   Major n-propanol producers in China, 2016

Producer    Location    Process     Capacity (kt/a)
Zibo Nuoao Chemical Co., Ltd.    Zibo, Shandong    Ethylene process    60
Nanjing Nuoao New Material Co., Ltd.    Nanjing, Jiangsu    Ethylene process    100
Nanjing Rongxin Chemical Co., Ltd.    Nanjing, Jiangsu    Ethylene process    40
Changchun Chemical (Panjin) Co., Ltd.    Panjin, Liaoning    BDO byproduct    13
Total            213


Table 2   Price trend of n-propanol and n-butanol in China, 2010-2016    (RMB/t)

Year    2010    2011    2012    2013    2014    2015    2016    2017 (Jan.-Feb.)
n-Propanol    8 000-9 300    9 500-10 300    9 000-10 200    9 500-15 000    8 000-9 300    7 900-9 300    8 000-9 500    9 500-10 200
n-Butanol    10 500-14 000    9 500-14 000    9 500-11 500    8 300-11 500    6 500-9 000    4 300-7 400    4 500-7 000    6 200-6 600