Ion Exchange Resins Have Bright Prospects
Year:2017 ISSUE:16
COLUMN:FINE & SPECIALTY
Click:346    DateTime:Nov.30,2017
Ion Exchange Resins Have Bright Prospects

By Zhang Feitong, China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation

Equipment for making ion exchange resins in China is improving rapidly, and single-line capacity keeps growing. There are more than 40 producers today, and more than 10 have individual capacity above 10 kt/a.
Major players in water treatment resins in China include Suqing Water Treatment Engineering Group Co., Ltd. and Zhejiang Zhengguang Industrial Co., Ltd.
Kerry Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd. and Dandong Mingzhu Special Resin Co., Ltd. are leaders in ion exchange resin catalysts.
China made around 270 kt of ion exchange resins last year, up 5.1% YoY.

Consumption is concentrated in three sectors

Major application sectors for ion exchange resins are water treatment, adsorption processes and catalysts. The total consumption of ion exchange resins in China was around 192 kt in 2016. The water treatment sector was biggest, taking around 128 kt, or 67%. The adsorption process sector consumed 37 kt, or around 19%. The catalyst sector consumed 19 kt, or around 10%.

Water treatment

The demand for ion exchange resins in the water treatment sector is the biggest. Ion exchange resins are used mainly to remove anionic and cationic ions from water. The biggest consumption is in the treatment of pure water in thermal power plants. Consumption in nuclear power plants, semiconductor production and electronics comes next. Annual growth of ion exchange resin consumption in the water treatment sector is expected to average around 3.5% in the next five years. Consumption of ion exchange resins in the water treatment sector in 2021 will be around 35 kt.

Adsorption processes

Ion exchange resins used in adsorption processes are called adsorption resins. Adsorption resins have lots of special features such as stable physiochemical properties, resistance to dissolution in acids, alkalis and organic solvents, concentration or separation to organisms, and great resistance to interference from inorganic salts and strong ionic or low molecular compounds. They are very selective in adsorption of impurities contained in objects. Adsorption resins are extensively used in the production of foods and medicines. It is expected that growth of ion exchange resin consumption in the adsorption process sector will average around 5% in the next five years. Consumption of ion exchange resins in the adsorption process sector will increase to around 52 kt in 2021.

Catalysts

Applications of ion exchange resin catalysts in China today mainly include etherification/ether bond cracking, hydration, esterification and condensation/cyclization. With constant advances of production technologies, the variety of resin catalysts keeps increasing, their performance improves constantly, and their application scope is more and more extensive. Growth of ion exchange resin consumption in the catalyst sector is expected to average around 10% in the next five years. Consumption of ion exchange resins in the catalyst sector will increase to around 35 kt in 2021.

Export increases steadily

China’s export of ion exchange resins increased constantly in recent years and accounts for around 1/3 of total output. Products are sold to over 50 countries and regions. In addition to conventional resins, nuclear grade resins with high purity and quite a few adsorption resins with high added value have entered the international market. In the domestic market, China-made brands are also gradually replacing imported products. China exported around 90 kt of ion exchange resins in 2016, or around 30% of output.

Product variety is enriched

The application of resin catalysts in China started in the 1980s. In the initial years, the market demand was totally satisfied by import. With constant efforts by enterprises and research institutions, products with high performance were developed step by step. An etherification resin catalyst developed by Kerry Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd. with its own efforts was used in PetroChina Fushun Petrochemical Co., Ltd. in 2000 for the first time in history. Performance indexes of the product such as conversion rate, low-temperature activity, corrosion resistance and service life were highly praised by clients. The course for the localization of etherification resin catalysts was therefore started. A hydration resin catalyst with high-temperature resistance developed by Kerry Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd. with its own efforts was used in former Heilongjiang Petrochemical Plant in 2003 for the first time in history. Local enterprises such as Kerry Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd. and Dandong Mingzhu Special Resin Co., Ltd. have developed more products afterwards and the upgrading and development of resin catalysts in China is promoted.
To meet the needs of the market, high-end products with resins for catalysts as the lead have appeared in the ion exchange resin sector. Examples include D006 etherification catalyst, D008 olefin hydration catalyst and DHC-1 propylene hydration catalyst developed by Kerry Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd. and unconventional mono-sphere resin specifically for mixed beds developed by Zhejiang Zhengguang Industrial Co., Ltd.