Does anyone know which domestic manufacturers are working on polycarbonate projects?

The news that the 100,000-ton/year polycarbonate (PC) production project at Qingdao Hengyuan Chemical, part of Yangmei Group, had begun construction came as a shock, drawing the attention of many people. As a policy-supported project under the 12th Five-Year Plan, the next two years will see a surge in China’s PC production capacity. Companies are beginning to focus on expanding into new areas of development in the future market, in an effort to overcome the problem of overcapacity. News of plans to launch PC projects is coming in from various places. Although many in the industry believe that, given the current sluggish market conditions, such PC project developments are more of a gimmick, experts say that the construction of some of these projects is already underway in secret. Based on incomplete statistics alone, the following facilities are included: Ningbo Zhejiang Railway Dafeng Chemical Co., Ltd., with a capacity of 100,000 tons per year, completed in 2014; Shanghai Bayer Technology Materials Co., Ltd., with a capacity of 250,000 tons per year, completed by the end of 2014; Luxi Chemical Group Co., Ltd., with a capacity of 200,000 tons per year (65,000 tons per year for the first phase), with the first phase completed in 2015; Qingdao Hengyuan Chemical Co., Ltd., with a capacity of 100,000 tons per year, completed in 2015; Global United Chemical Co., Ltd., with a capacity of 260,000 tons per year (130,000 tons per year for the first phase), completed in the third quarter of 2015. The total production capacity is 645,000 tons per year, while at present it is only 470,000 tons per year; by 2015 it will reach 1,115,000 tons, with an annual growth rate of 137%. Faced with such a massive release of capacity, it is inevitable to feel concerned. According to experts, as of 2013, China’s apparent demand was around 1.45 million tons, of which 1.377 million tons came from overseas imports, resulting in an import dependence of nearly 95%. The deployment of production capacity by domestic enterprises in our country helps reduce the heavy reliance on imports, but it fails to address the issue of overproduction. Therefore, as PC devices are being widely adopted across various regions, companies are also putting the potential development areas in the future market on their research agenda. 　　It is understood that some companies have intensified their research and production of pure resins in preparation for entering the modified material market. Some companies are turning their attention to the high-end material market, purchasing granules in advance for research purposes, in order to escape the chaos of unfettered competition. PC/abs alloys account for over 25%, and when combined with other modified products and high-end materials, their share rises to over 45%. Therefore, Zhuochuang also believes that the PC industry has broad prospects for development in high-value-added areas; the automotive and electronics/IT sectors remain the drivers of PC demand, while the construction and LED markets are also performing well. The application of polycarbonates should move toward higher functionality and specialization, making full use of technological advancements in plastic modification and plastic alloys to enhance the quality and added value of these products. Only by competing with various specialized polycarbonate grades available abroad in different application areas can they strive to capture the domestic market.

Advances in Polycarbonate Production Technology and Market Analysis

As soon as word of the polycarbonate project got out, everyone rushed to get involved.

So far, the only successful ones are Zhejiang Railway Dafeng (non-phosgene method), Luxi Chemical (phosgene method), and Yantai Wanhua, which is about to go into operation (phosgene method). Overall, the phosgene process is stable and yields high-quality products. Glyoxal method remains the dominant approach internationally.

The strong wind from Zhejiang Railway University – haha, the demand for these products exceeds the supply

Glyoxal method remains the dominant approach internationally