China Accelerates Growth in Production of p-Aramid Fiber for Domestic Use

By Zhang Bei, China National Chemical Information Centre

The p-aramid fiber sector in China is developing rapidly. Capacity increased from 255 t/a in 2009 to 4 200 t/a in 2016. The biggest producer is Yantai Tayho Advanced Materials Co., Ltd., with 1 500 t/a capacity. Second is Bluestar (Chengdu) New Materials Co., Ltd., with 1 000 t/a capacity.
In addition to these two, four enterprises have constructed p-aramid fiber units but have not yet achieved normal production. Suzhou Zhaoda Specially Fiber Technical Co., Ltd. constructed a 500 t/a production unit but sold the unit to Sinochem International Corporation in 2016, and relocation of the equipment is planned. China Pingmei Shenma Group in Henan constructed a 500 t/a production unit, but technical problems have delayed production. Sinopec Yizheng Chemical Fiber Co., Ltd. in Jiangsu owns a 100 t/a pilot production unit which is in low-load production. Shandong Province cooperated with Tsinghua University to construct a 1 000 t/a production unit in 2016; the unit is still at the debugging stage.

Consumption

The drive for self-sufficiency in p-aramid fiber production has promoted domestic consumption. Consumption was around 7 300 tons in 2016. Major consuming sectors include rope/cable materials, where it is used mainly in making high-strength ropes, sewing threads and kite strings; bulletproof/protective materials, where it is used mainly in making bulletproof fabrics, cut-resistant materials and fireproof fabrics; synthetic rubbers, where it is used mainly to produce rubber hoses, transmission belts and tire rubber stocks; and composites, where it is used mainly in making solid rocket engine cases, spacecraft bodies, main wings and tail wings and private yacht materials.
The p-aramid fiber produced in China has already entered all of these application sectors except bulletproof materials, and it holds a domestic market share of around 20%. It is expected that with increased domestic output, the consumption of p-aramid fiber in China will grow rapidly in the next few years. The manufacture of optical cables, synthetic rubbers and composites will drive consumption growth. Domestic demand for p-aramid fiber is expected to exceed 10 000 tons by 2020.

Price

Domestic prices of conventional-grade p-aramid fiber in 2016 were RMB140 000-170 000/t. Low-grade p-aramid fiber is used mainly in sectors without high requirements on product performance, such as ropes and sewing threads, and the price range is RMB100 000-120 000/t. High-grade p-aramid fiber satisfies high requirements for product performance and is used mainly in special applications such as bulletproof materials for national defense and public security, and the price is still very high, usually over RMB200 000/t.
p-Aramid fiber prices will likely stabilize in the next five years: (1) The number of application sectors of domestic p-aramid fiber will grow because of rising performance requirements. The proportion consumed in middle and high-end sectors will be higher. The possibility of prices decreasing is therefore quite small. (2) The p-aramid fiber supply will still fall very short, by around 6 000 t/a, based on conservative estimates. The possibility of prices declining is therefore not big. (3) Consumption of p-aramid fiber in making composites will grow, pushing demand and promoting the market. These fibers will meet competition from other products such as ultrahigh-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE), carbon fiber and polyphenylene sulfide fiber in some application sectors, so the possibility of a small price drop resulting from this competition should not be ruled out.
p-Aramid fiber is already in commercial production in China. The main domestic products today are medium- and low-grade varieties. No p-aramid fiber used in national defense such as composite reinforcing materials for bulletproof products, rocket engine cases and tank armor is commercially produced in China, due to a lack of required production technologies. The supply shortfall last year is estimated to have been around 5 000 tons. It is therefore imperative to strengthen R&D for p-aramid fiber composites and application technologies.