Development of China's Dyes and Pigments Industry During the 14th Five-Year Plan Period
Click:0    DateTime:Aug.24,2021

China Dyestuff Industry Association

Guidelines

Guided by President Xi Jinping's Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, China’s dyes and pigments industry should follow the spirit of the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, as well as the second plenary session, the third plenary session, the fourth plenary session and the fifth plenary session of the 19th Communist Party of China Central Committee. The industry should stick to setting up a new development concept; adhere to the supply side structural reform; take priority of technological innovation, green development and high-quality development; and change the development modes in practice. By doing so, the industry will make progress in aspects of the technological innovation, the optimization of product structure, the safety and environmental protection, as well as the energy conservation and emission reduction, so as to meet the escalating demand from textile printing and dyeing market and emerging fields, and then to promote higher-quality and healthier development in China dyes and pigments industry in turn. 

Basic principles

Adhering to innovative development: China’s dyes and pigments industry should attach importance to high-quality development following the direction of independent innovation, high-quality innovation and intelligent manufacturing. It is expected that the industry will have a further step-up towards high-end, intelligent and green manufacturing by 2025.

Adhering to green development: The industry should follow the concept of green development continuously, develop widely-applicable energy saving and emission reduction technologies, and speed up the construction of smart equipment. The rollout of clean production evaluation index system should be accelerated to promote the legitimate implementation of clean production among dyes and pigments enterprises; the technological transformation related to corporate safety and environmental protection as well as recycling should be geared up so as to improve low-carbon green development; the collaborative governance between industrial parks and enterprises along the industrial chain should be further promoted in a bid to constitute a green supply chain and an ecological industrial chain.

Adhering to open development: The industry should deepen the cooperation with countries along “the Belt and Road”, set up an international trade platform, promote the balance development of trades, improve the quality of services, as well as enhance the networking, digitalization and intellectualization of trades.

Adhering to coordinated development: Steered by market demand, the industry should develop new kinds of high-end, differentiated and specialized products, promote the circulation of production factors and the effective combination between production, distribution, circulation and consumption, and seek for higher-end development of industrial structure and product structure. In general, the industry should deepen the coordinated development of green supply chain and industrial chain.

Development goal

The dyes and pigments industry should maintain a sound growth to cover the domestic demand, while expanding exports and foreign production to raise the global market share, so it can see growth in output at home and abroad. It is expected that 95% of domestic dyeing and pigment enterprises will be settled in industrial parks by 2025, and 40% of them will be merged into corporate groups. The industry should establish and improve standards across the whole industry, restricting or prohibiting the repeated construction and transfer of laggard dyeing and pigment and their intermediate projects, recorrecting and shutting down substandard projects and enterprises, so as to lead the industry on track to a sustainable and healthy development.  

Development direction

1. To strengthen the foundations of safety management and highlight the entity responsibility of intrinsic safety

Safety production is paramount to an enterprise’s survival and development, so it is the bottom line that an enterprise must hold, and what’s more, it is the red line that an enterprise cannot surmount. 

2. To arouse enterprises’  self-awareness of protecting the ecological environment for green development

Strictly adhering to the tasks and requirements specified in the Opinions of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council on Comprehensively Strengthening Ecological and Environmental Protection as well as Resolutely Fighting against Pollution, and hinging on the targets of "peak carbon dioxide emissions" and "carbon neutrality", China's dyes and pigments industry should establish a green and low-carbon circular industrial system, promote in-depth governance of environmental protection, resolutely control and fight pollution, in order to comprehensively shed light on the green development image of the dyes and pigments industry.

3. To drive out of laggard capacities at a faster pace and encourage regional coordinated development

Firstly, to lead strategic restructuring among dominant enterprises. Leading enterprises and dominant enterprises are encouraged to merge and restructure laggard enterprises through technological transformation at home and abroad, so as to improve production processes and intrinsic safety of laggard enterprises and build an ecological chain for green development. Leading enterprises can also become bigger and stronger by joint ventures, partnership or other forms, allowing more enterprises to participate in internationalized business operation.

Secondly, to speed up the cultivation of growth-type small and medium-sized enterprises. Small and medium-sized enterprises are encouraged to establish strategic alliances with large enterprises and corporate groups, and build clusters of supporting and cooperative enterprises bridged by industrial chain, supply chain and product chain, and construct an industrial organization structure for mutual promotion of large, medium and small enterprises and coordinated development of upstream and downstream enterprises; optimize and upgrade the structure of regional industrial clusters and the vertical integrative development of regional enterprises so as to create the region-specific brands. 

Thirdly, to keep an eye on the cross-regional settlement and risk transfer of laggard capacities. Given that the development of pigments and intermediate industries is unbalanced and the governance of safety and environmental protection in the Yangtze River economic belt is uneven, the National Guiding Catalogue for Industrial Structure Adjustment and Catalogue of Obsolete Safety Technology and Equipment are suggested to make timely amendment, resolutely closing the units that do not meet the standards, curbing blind, disorderly and illegal expansions, and promoting higher-end transformation and upgrading; according to the regulations, the government should forbid transferring the low-end capacities of dyes and pigments and intermediates to the central and western regions as well as Northeast China, make a greater push for the elimination of laggard capacities by resolutely closing the capacities that do not meet the environmental protection standards and pose great safety risks; halt the approval for homogeneous and repetitive construction projects in order to put a lid on the release of new low-end and inefficient capacities and thus keep the market stable and lift the development level of the industry.

4. To anchor innovation at the core of product competitiveness

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), the whole industry should step up innovation, and led by the market, the industry should promote the adjustment of product structure and the adjustment of adaptability and differentiation adjustment, speed up the transformation and upgrading of enterprises for smart manufacturing and green manufacturing as well as equipment modernization, so as to carry out brand strategies. The industry should strengthen the innovation of green technology and independent innovation, and attach importance to the innovation and application of green cleaning processes and new technologies, making manufacturing industry level up so as to comprehensively improve the green development and sustainable development capacity.

Key points of technological transformation

① To make reaction equipment closed, integrated, intelligent and informationized; improve the atomic utilization rate of raw materials, and reduce excessive substances, in a bid to precisely control reaction. To effectively reduce the energy and material consumption in the process of production, and reduce the generation of "waste water, waste gas, and waste residue", making production process clean and economic and making the emission of wastes meet standards. To establish a demonstration production line for dyes and pigments and intermediates, and improve the technologies and equipment level by transformation and promotion of the demonstration line

② With the pursuit of green products development and based on clean production technology, to make important breakthroughs in key technologies, especially the clean production technology of major intermediates, the continuity of equipment, and the automation of process control. To attach importance to the development of continuous nitration of aromatic sulfonic acid, continuous catalytic hydrogenation to prepare aromatic sulfonic acid amino compounds, continuous catalytic hydrogenation reaction based on ceramic membrane separation, continuous oxidation technology of aromatic compounds and new continuity technology of diazotization-coupling reaction in the manufacturing process of dyes. To accelerate the research of an intermediate - sulfur trioxide sulfonation, continuous nitration, catalytic hydrogenation, new solid-phase reaction, and the research of automatic control of equipment. 

5. To establish and improve the dyes and pigments standard system to lead the industry into regulated development

Firstly, in order to step up the institutionalization, standardization and informatization of regulation and law enforcement, the industry should assist relevant government departments to review the current laws and regulations of safety and environmental protection production; establish, improve and issue an evaluation index system of clean production for dyes and pigments and intermediates industry, emission standards of air and wastewater pollutants, specifications of wastewater engineering treatment, and technical policies for wastewater pollution prevention and control. With the above standards and specifications, the industry can lead the dyes and pigments and intermediates markets into sustainable and healthy development. 

Secondly, the industry should establish a comprehensive quality management system, improve the industry quality inspection system, and lift the quality and profit of new products. The industry should carry forward the standardization process, promote the preparation and revision of standards for products, especially the standards for high-end products, as well as step up the formulation of basic standards and method standards. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), the industry will formulate and revise 50 standards for dyes, 30 standards for organic pigments and 20 standards for printing and dyeing additives, so as to underpin the leading role of standards in the upgrading of product technology and quality.

6. To further improve the technology development and product service, and enhance the brand influence

Firstly, in face of the problems existing in the application of dyes, the industry should offer dyeing and finishing technologies and work out related technical solutions; secondly, the industry should provide services such as color customization and color database management to fabric enterprises, provide dyeing formulas of corresponding color, electronic numerical and spectral data, create a new business model of dye management and enhance brand influence; thirdly, the industry should attach importance to the protection of independent intellectual property rights as well as the measurement and improvement of data information of chemical materials. 

7. To speed up the construction of smart chemical plants and enhance the level of fine manufacturing

In view of the acceleration of smart technical innovation and industrial transformation, enterprises should be engaged in the construction of network infrastructures and platform, and cultivate the ability of accumulation, development and comprehensive application of data infrastructure, platform and application.

8. To ally with professional colleges and universities to speed up the cultivation of professional and skilled talents

Development focuses

First, to develop dyes that meet the needs of market development and meet the requirements of new technologies, new fibers and energy conservation and emission reduction in the textile printing and dyeing industry. To develop dyes and pigments products needed by new textile materials adopting fiber dyeing and finishing technologies such as microfiber, high imitation cotton fiber (extinction and anti-UV moisture-absorbing and sweat-discharging polyester imitation cotton fiber, quick-dry and sweat-discharging fiber), bio-based fiber, differentiated multifunctional fiber (anti-allergy viscose fiber, anti-virus viscose fiber and antibacterial viscose fiber), polylactic acid fiber, bamboo, hemp pulp, alginic and kapok. To develop dyes and pigments suitable for textiles resisting harmful substances and germs as well as high flame retardant and fire-proof textiles which can produce war protective clothing, fire-fighting clothing, medical sterile clothing and high-performance filters. To develop dyes applicable for supercritical dyeing, dyes for life identification, and temporary soluble dyes. To strengthen research and development of the application fields of dyes and pigments and derivatives, in particular fields of high-performance fibers, such as carbon fiber, para aramid and polyimide, and their composites, and fields of high-quality, personalized and functional products to meet various needs, which can provide raw materials to the development of downstream industries.

Second, to develop green dyes and pigments that meet the needs for the upgrading of ecological safety and environmental protection. To research and develop preparation technology, production equipment and intelligent control system suitable for fine chemical safety production; to adjust the concept of products design and focus on the development of products with strong ecological safety, functionality and practicability; to attach importance to the measurement of ecological safety data and inherent characteristic data of new dye and pigment products including physical and chemical properties, toxicological properties and ecotoxicological properties. 

Third, to strengthen the technical innovation of dyes and pigments commercialization so as to enhance the competitiveness. For example, SPPP technology should make breakthrough in the adjustment of structure, particle size, particle morphology and polarity; the development of preforms or preparations should be promoted to meet the needs of application in water-based coatings, UV curing materials, color filters, 3D printing, OLED, digital spray painting and electronic information.

Fourth, to design and develop ecologically-safe printing and dyeing additives applicable for new dyeing and finishing technologies.

Research focuses of printing and dyeing additives:

(1) To research green, environmental-friendly new textile printing and dyeing additives. To develop new-generation pretreatment additives to solve core problems such as low temperature, low foam and low COD of pretreatment products, especially to develop degreasing agents with emulsification and net washing capacity against a variety of oil agents. 

To develop waterproof finishing agents to replace C8 with C6 waterproof agent; to promote the application of fluorine-free waterproof agent after the technical breakthrough. To develop softeners and to develop silicone oil additives featured with smoothness, elasticity, wrinkle resistance and brightness; to develop hydrophilic softeners with the characteristics of hydrophilic (instantaneous and lasting) and washing resistance; to develop hyperstable softener with compound stability and processing safety; to develop block silicone oil with fluffy, smooth and oily features.

(2) To modify traditional printing and dyeing additives by nanotechnology, biotechnology, microemulsion technology and slow-release technology to obtain high-efficiency additives with a variety of special functions; to develop new after-finishing additives and coating finishing agents to enhance the fastness and hydrolysis resistance of waterborne PU; to further develop and improve environmental-friendly flame retardant rubber additives; to enhance the functionality of PA products such as home textiles; to develop functional additives such as anti-mite, anti-bacterial, anti-enzyme and anti-mosquito additives, and to make breakthroughs in flame retardant and environmental-friendly additives.

(3) To develop low-carbon, compact-process, high-function and high value-added additives, including high specific additives, high-function additives, low-temperature additives and multi-functional additives. To develop functional leveling agents with low bath ratio; to improve the utilization rate of dyes, enhance the effect of dye-fixing agent and the compound performance of dye-fixing agent, especially the fastness of knitted fabric with spandex and the compound performance of leveling agent for silicone oil film; to develop low-temperature, anti-fouling, soaping and other energy-saving and emission reduction post dyeing cleaning additives, as well as pad dyeing additives for polyester velvet products.

(4) To develop a variety of functional additives, such as light fastness improver, far-infrared anion finishing agent, heating finishing agent series, cold finishing agent, and skin care finishing agent.

(5) To develop additives appliable in smart textiles and high-performance industrial textiles, additives appliable in low water and anhydrous printing and dyeing processing technologies such as air flow dyeing and digital printing, as well as additives appliable in the dyeing and finishing of new functional chemical fibers; to research the synthetic technology as well as formulation and synergistic technology of additives.

To accelerate the replacement of prohibited substances such as perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), nonylphenol (NP) and nonylphenol polyoxyethylene ether (NPE); to make printing and dyeing additives safer and more environmental protection during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025).

To strengthen R&D and innovation of high-end products 

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), dyes and pigments enterprises should step up the research and development of new high-end products and technologies in key fields, such as new-type fibers, electronic liquid crystals, health care, aviation and military products; develop high-performance and functional products. In the process of R&D of high-end products, enterprises should focus on the innovation of products needed by other fields of the national economy. Research focuses:

Firstly, to research and develop high-solubility (with solubility of 20%-30%) and high-strength reactive dyes, acid dyes and organic pigments (waterborne printing ink, waterborne inkjet printing ink, dispersive thermal sublimation ink, reactive ink, discharge ink for garment direct printing, fluorescent thermal sublimation ink, pigment printing ink, and ceramic inkjet printing ink), to meet the requirements of particle size, suspension stability and crystallization control in the application of high-strength inkjet printing, so that high-strength inkjet printing can be put into mass production. 

Secondly, to develop disperse dyes, reactive dyes, acid dyes, composite-type new structure dyes and organic pigment products applicable in the dyeing and finishing technology of microfiber, high imitation cotton fiber (extinction and anti-UV moisture-absorbing and sweat-discharging polyester imitation cotton fiber, quick-dry and sweat-discharging fiber), multifunctional composite fiber, polylactic acid fiber, bamboo fiber, polyester fiber, polyamide fiber and wool. Develop dyeing pigment products suitable for textiles with barrier against harmful substances and germs, high flame retardant and fire-proof textiles, so as to meet the requirements of textiles such as war protective clothing, fire-fighting clothing, medical sterile clothing and high-performance filters. To develop dyes and pigments suitable for textiles resisting harmful substances and germs as well as high flame retardant and fire-proof textiles which can produce war protective clothing, fire-fighting clothing, medical sterile clothing and high-performance filters. 

Thirdly, to develop new types of specialty dyes needed by new energy-saving and emission reduction green printing and dyeing technologies such as transfer printing technology, coating printing and dyeing technology, and microencapsulated dye non-additive wash-free dyeing technology, as well as to modify the existing types. To develop the synthesis technology of fluorine-containing pyrimidines reactive dyes and the synthesis technology of fluorine-containing pyrimidines by liquid-phase catalytic fluorination, and to develop a new-type clean process of fluorine-containing pyrimidines intermediates to meet the requirements of the synthesis technologies of reactive dyes.

To develop new-type azo-anthraquinone active dyes with light fastness exceeding grade 5, innovate and design azo-anthraquinone reactive dyes, innovate and produce reactive dyes with high dyeing strength and light fastness, making the final fixation rate of cotton fiber stay above 90%. In addition, to develop new-type coatings for a variety of fabric pigment printing and pigment dyeing, such as ultra-fine coatings, nano coatings, high-purity dyes, as well as waterborne coatings, waterborne coatings for interior and exterior wall of buildings, waterborne coatings for furniture wood and waterborne paper pigment printing paste, and also to make great efforts to develop dyes and pigments used for coloring, such as UV curing printing ink and UV curing coatings. 

Fourthly, to develop organic pigment types appliable for fields such as transportation (including automobiles, modern rail traffic, and aerospace), life science (including medicine, medical treatment, biology, and agriculture), electronic chemicals (products supporting the electronic industry, such as liquid crystal and plastics), new energy chemicals (such as wind power, photoelectric, solar cell sensitizers, and color filter), as well as pigment types with high luminous flux, high color saturation value and high engineering, making the products meet requirements of lightweight, high strength, high temperature resistance, and shock absorption. To give a greater push to the deep processing research of existing high-grade organic pigments (preforms and derivatives) to meet the requirements of aqueous dispersion, powder solidification and radiation curing (UV, IR) in the field of printing ink; to meet the requirements of powder coatings for waterborne pigment paste and spray printing paste in the field of paint coloring; to meet the requirements of resin preparations such as toner, color sand and color chips in the field of plastic coloring, especially colorants for 3D printing materials on the back of the fast-growing 3D printing market; to meet the requirements of functional uses and specific high-efficiency materials (thermal, photosensitive, pressure-sensitive and photoconductive materials).

Fifth, to attach importance to new materials fields of chemicals. Carbon fiber materials, nano materials, biomaterials, aerospace materials and high-temperature superconducting materials are cutting-edge materials. Microelectronic and optoelectronic materials, composites, functional polymer materials and environment-friendly materials are the most widely used materials and will be the cutting-edge new materials, such as modified plastics and plastic alloy materials, high-end polyolefin plastics and engineering plastics. Ultra-high molecular weight polytetrafluoroethylene is needed by 5G infrastructures and aerospace. To develop dyes and pigments matching with new chemical materials so as to meet the requirements of high-end products such as specialty engineering plastics. 

Sixth, to grow the color masterbatch products into multi-function, high color content and high-technology content.

    Seventh, to research and develop graphene thermoplastic color masterbatch and composite.