Market size of ultra high molecular weight polyethylene fiber to be expanded

Editor's Note: Recently, the annual meeting of the ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber industry chain innovation forum and branch was held in Yancheng, Jiangsu. The conference was hosted by China Chemical Fiber Industry Association, China Chemical Fiber Industry Association Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene Fiber Branch and Jiangsu Shenhe Technology Development Co., Ltd. With the theme of “coordinating industry consensus to promote coordinated development”, the conference discussed the current status, existing problems and future development trends of China's ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber industry.

As one of the three high-performance fibers with the same name as carbon fiber and aramid, ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber is the world's highest strength and specific modulus fiber, and its specific strength is more than 10 times that of the same section of steel wire. Second only to premium carbon fiber, it is an important strategic high-performance material related to national security and economic development.

According to Wang Yimin, a professor at the School of Materials Science and Engineering at Donghua University, ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers were originally obtained by melt-spinning in the early 1970s by Professor IWard of the University of Leeds, England. China has been researching this kind of fiber since 1984, and since 1997 it has been in Zhejiang Dacheng and Beijing Zhongfang Investment, and in 1999 in Hunan Zhongtai to carry out large-scale expansion and production.

In the early stage of the development of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber industry, the world's industrial enterprises producing ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber are mainly DSM of the Netherlands, Honeywell of the United States and Toyobo of Japan. With China's independent intellectual property rights , the production technology of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers has been rapidly improved.

At present, the world's total production capacity of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers is about 35,800 tons / year, of which the Netherlands is about 0.6 million tons / year, the United States is about 0.3 million tons / year, Japan is about 0.32 tons / year, China It is about 23,600 tons / year.

Industry enters a benign development track

At present, there are more than 20 ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber enterprises in China. In addition to the annual production capacity of 8 thousand tons, the annual production capacity of most enterprises is still below 1,000 tons.

Hunan Zhongtai Special Equipment Co., Ltd. is the first enterprise in China to realize the industrial production of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber in kilotons. According to the chairman of the company introduced high waves, the production of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber and UD cloth, Stab proof clothing and other products quality has reached the international advanced level, is the world's first ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber bulletproof, stab-resistant material Industrial production enterprises. In addition, Zhongtai is the first enterprise in China to realize the industrial preparation of continuous wide-width ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber non-woven fabrics, and realize the autonomy of China's military and police protective materials.

The development of the industry is inseparable from the advancement of production equipment and technology. At present, 90% of the engineering technology and equipment used by enterprises producing ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers in China are from Jiangsu Shenhe Technology Development Co., Ltd. Guo Zixian, chairman of the ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene branch of China Chemical Fiber Industry Association and chairman of Jiangsu Shenhe Technology Development Co., Ltd., knows that the world is changing with each passing day, and only by continuous innovation can enterprises continue to develop. He said: "Shenhe is the first enterprise in China to participate in the research and development of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber complete equipment technology. Through unremitting efforts, we constantly optimize the process, improve the equipment, and solve the problem of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber in production. Various problems, such as solving the phenomenon of macromolecular entanglement encountered in the preparation of spinning solution by means of equipment, and using the accumulated experience in the field of chemical fiber equipment for many years, the company has developed an efficient and safe extraction of the post-spinning stage. Special equipment for drying and special equipment for ultra-high stretch."

According to reports, according to the requirements of the fiber production process, Shenhe from the former spinning to the post-spinning. After nearly 20 years of research and exploration, in 2013, it successfully developed the industrial engineering technology with a stand-alone annual production capacity of 30~300 tons, breaking the international monopoly. It fills the gap in industrial equipment in this field in China. Then, by improving the process, simplifying the process, improving the quality and production efficiency, the production cost per ton of fiber was reduced from the original 200,000 yuan to about 60,000 yuan.

“At present, Shenhe officially launched the fourth-generation production line, which has the characteristics of high process control, difficult design and processing, and high precision of equipment manufacturing. It solves the problem that the ultra-large cabinet is not distributed due to solution pressure and temperature during the spinning process. The dry deformation of the spinning strip caused by the direct impact on the quality of the product and the stable production of major problems." Guo Zixian said.

Driven by leading enterprises such as Zhongtai and Shenhe, after years of development, China's ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber industry has made a major breakthrough. Duan Xiaoping, vice president of China Textile Industry Association and president of China Chemical Fiber Industry Association, summarized the following three points: First, domestic ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber has large-scale production capacity and has independent intellectual property rights. And the wet preparation method, the product quality has reached the international advanced level, the international market competitiveness has been continuously improved, and the export of fiber and products has exceeded 50%. Second, the frequency of research and development of new products in the ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber industry chain is accelerating. High-quality resins, high-strength fibers, fine denier fibers and other products have greatly satisfied the application needs of the three major fields of domestic cable, bulletproof and gloves. Especially worth mentioning is the expansion of the civilian market. The downstream fabric companies have developed pure textile woven fabrics using the good thermal conductivity of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers. They are used in fabrics for home textiles such as mats and sheets, which have a good cooling sensation. Performance, maintaining growth in the market. On this basis, in the past two years, the ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber industry has maintained a good development trend. The national output has exceeded 9,000 tons, and the operating rate of the whole industry has exceeded 70%. The usage of various application fields has increased to varying degrees. Third, the company's efficiency continued to improve, the key enterprises in the industry maintained a good profit level, the overall production and operation conditions improved, and the industry has gradually entered a benign development track.

The future application prospects are very broad

In the high-performance fiber market, ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers have many excellent properties, ranging from mooring ropes in offshore oil fields to high-performance lightweight composite materials , in modern military and aerospace, The field of maritime defense equipment also plays a pivotal role, so the development is very rapid. Gao Bo said that before the 1980s, its average annual growth rate was 8.5%. After the 1980s, its annual average growth rate was as high as 15% to 20%, while China's average annual growth rate was over 30%.

It is understood that at present, China's domestic high-strength ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber is equivalent to the Sk7 series of DSM of the Netherlands in terms of comprehensive performance, which basically meets the application requirements of bulletproof, explosion-proof and anti-cutting.

With the advancement of technology, ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers are increasingly used in military or civilian applications. Talking about its future market prospects, Yang Jianwen, chairman of Jiangsu Jiujiujiu Special Fiber Products Co., Ltd., said that he is very optimistic. He said: "Ultra high molecular weight polyethylene fiber will have better performance in bulletproof helmets, body armor, battlefield hospitals, field tents, protective gloves, marine ropes, deck bulletproof, uppers, concrete, bridge protection, wind power generation, etc. Development prospects. For example, in the case of cutting sneakers, about 16 billion pairs of sneakers are produced in the world each year. Calculating 50 grams of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber per pair will be a very impressive market."

It is understood that the current annual production capacity of Jiujiu is 4,000 tons, and the production and sales rate is almost 100%. At present, the company has nearly 10,000 tons of the third phase of the project under construction, and is expected to form 14,000 tons of actual capacity in 2019.

Yang Ying, deputy general manager of Beijing Aerospace Antai Technology Co., Ltd. analyzed from the field of protective products: “At present, in the global body armor market, the proportion of Chinese products is 70%, and the prospects are very promising. It is expected that UHMWPE can The heat resistance has been improved. At that time, the market prospect of China's protective products will be even broader."

Shanghai Haichun Textile Technology Co., Ltd. mainly uses the chilling characteristics of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber, and applies it to home textile products such as mattresses and pillowcases. Its products are favored by the international market. In the research and development, the company and the upstream yarn enterprises gradually solved the problems that the ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber is easily broken in the woven fabric, easily damaged, difficult to cut and single color, and gradually improved the quality of the product and enriched the product. Category. Chen Bo, chairman of the company, said that in 2017, the company's consumption of chilled silk reached 1,000 tons. It is expected that the demand for this fiber will be greatly improved in 2018.

Upstream and downstream work together to promote industry progress

It is worth noting that there is still a lot of room for improvement in the prospect of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers. “At present, the production of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers is low, the production cost is high, and the maximum mechanical properties are far from being achieved, especially in terms of strength. In addition, its creep resistance, heat resistance and affinity with the substrate need to be improved. The fiber is too time-dependent, and the short-term load impact performance is good, but the long-term load will show obvious creep. From this perspective, ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber is not a real high-performance fiber." Wang Yimin Said.

These shortcomings of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber greatly limit the further expansion of its application field, and it is a technical problem that needs to be solved in the future. In this regard, Shenhe has made certain achievements in terms of craftsmanship and equipment. “In recent years, we have adjusted the R&D direction in a timely manner by deep understanding and mastering customer needs, thus establishing the shortcomings of further reducing production costs, improving product quality, overcoming the balance of previous breakpoints, and eliminating existing process routes. The resulting fiber indicators are unstable," said Guo Zixian.

It is understood that Shenhe has organized research and development personnel to increase research and development since 2015. It is the first in China to develop high-temperature and anti-creep fibers, multi-series dyed fibers, high-grade cut-resistant fibers and other differentiated processes and equipment. The technology has continuously expanded its application fields. Among them, the industrialization technology of high temperature resistant creep resistant fiber and high grade cut-resistant fiber used in the optical cable and high temperature composite materials industry has begun to mature.

Guo Zixian said: "We have established a production line with green environmental protection and low operating costs as the carrier's future research and development direction and promotion focus. The research and development goal is to focus on the production capacity and cost of conventional chemical fiber, and vigorously expand the civilian field to replace high-strength polyester and nylon. Products, play the characteristics of high strength, UV resistance, corrosion resistance, etc., and gradually expand the offshore fishing and marine breeding market. High-strength, cutting-resistant fiber technology, applied to drilling platforms and super-large ships, providing customers with differentiated, low-cost equipment technology, making ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers more widely used."

Compared with developed countries such as the Netherlands, the United States, and Japan, China's ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers still have problems such as unstable product quality, low serialization, low added value, and insufficient supply of high-end products. In this regard, Jiang Shicheng, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, believes that in the future, relevant technology alliances and technology centers can be formed to support the research and development of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers. In the process of research and development, by strengthening the docking with the market, the ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber has reached a new level in terms of product performance, variety and quality.

In the view of Wang Huaping, deputy dean of Donghua University Research Institute, promoting the application of modern information technology in the high-performance fiber industry is the only way and key development direction for the transformation and upgrading of the industry. The ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber industry should pay special attention to the development of information technology, intelligence and traceability of production processes. He believes that the effective combination of scale and intelligence will be more conducive to the technological progress of the ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber industry.

The progress of the industry is also inseparable from the support of relevant national policies. In this regard, He Yanli, vice president of China Chemical Fiber Industry Association, said that from the State Council to various ministries and commissions issued a number of industrial policies, new materials , high-performance fiber are highly regarded and supported industries. Recently, the Raw Materials Division of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology initiated the first batch of key insurance materials to apply the insurance compensation mechanism pilot work, not only for the upstream enterprises of raw materials, but also for the downstream enterprises that failed to use upstream products, and 80% of the insurance quotas originated from the central government. Finance, this is a big good news for the entire industry. "In addition to the policy support for high-performance fibers and products, the state must also support downstream enterprises to enable the upstream and downstream to develop synergistically, so that ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers can better serve China's defense, aviation and people's livelihood economy. He Yanli added.

For the coordinated development of upstream and downstream, Duan Xiaoping also agrees. He pointed out that in the process of industrial development, all raw materials enterprises should be absorbed, because raw material enterprises have a greater impact on product development and quality improvement. In addition, the direction of technological advancement should be focused on low-cost and high-temperature creep resistance, because this is related to the future market size of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibers. At the same time, the industry must develop rationally and rhythmically to avoid vicious competition.