Do not get from the frying pan into the fire

Ceresana publishes new market report on flame retardants

25-Feb-2014 - Germany

flame retardants prevent or delay the combustion of materials and are indispensable in the protection of plastic products, electric devices, construction materials or textiles. An increasing demand for plastics in the construction sector, automotive industry and the segment electrics and electronics results in a continuing growth of the market for flame retardants. In 2013, more than 2 million tonnes of flame retardants were consumed worldwide and the market research institute Ceresana forecasts revenues of approx. US$7.15 billion to be generated in 2021.

China accounting for quarter of global demand

Asia-Pacific is the largest sales market for flame retardants, China single-handedly accounts for almost 24% of global demand. Even though the American market suffered losses in the previous years, in the construction industry in particular, North America continues to be the second largest sales market, followed by Western Europe. Driven by China and India, Asia-Pacific will gain market shares in the future. The Middle East and South America will be large growth markets as well; absolute figures in these regions are, however, considerably lower.

Largest sales market construction

The most important application area for flame retardants is the construction sector. An increasing amount of flammable materials are used in thermal insulation and improvement of energy efficiency of residential buildings. Pipes and cables made of plastics are used both in the construction of new buildings and the refurbishment of old ones, and are increasingly replacing conventional products such as pipes made of metal in emerging countries as well - fire protection has to be improved accordingly. The transportation industry (vehicles and aerospace) has also been notably increasing demand for high-performance, flame retardant plastics in the past years. In the future, the sector electrics and electronics will be the largest growth market. Manufacturers in the subsegment smartphones and tablet computers in particular will not only raise demand for flame retardant materials, but also put a rising value on the environmental impact of the flame retardants consumed.

Phosphorous-based products on the rise

While environmental organizations are campaigning for a continued reduction of the use of brominated flame retardants, some countries still introduce bromine-based products on the market. Nevertheless, the market for halogenated flame retardants (brominated and chlorinated flame retardants) is rapidly losing market shares to environmentally friendly products. Due to product innovation, consumption of phosphoric flame retardants is increasing at much higher rates than was expected a couple of years ago. The highest increase at an AAGR of 5% in the future is expected for products based on organophosphates, followed by products based on antimony oxide. In a global context, ATH (aluminum hydroxide) is the most commonly used type of flame retardant. Even though the market share held by brominated and chlorinated flame retardants is declining, absolute consumption continues to rise. In a regional context, the situation is more differentiated. Despite phosphorous-based products becoming very prominent in China as well, halogenated flame retardants are dominating this particular market so far. In both Western Europe and North America, ATH compounds account for about half of total market volume.

https://www.chemeurope.com/en/news/147061/do-not-get-from-the-frying-pan-into-the-fire.html