Asahi Kasei will increase the production capacity of low-dielectric constant materials at two bases in Japan and Taiwan, and this product will be used for the next-generation communication "5G".
At present, investment in 5G infrastructure is increasing in large markets such as the United States and China, and the supply and demand of low dielectric constant materials are very tight.
It is reported that Asahi Kasei will also invest in 5G base stations in Japan next year. Therefore, not only the Moriyama plant in Shiga, but also the Taiwan plant in China will begin mass production of low dielectric constant materials.
Asahi Kasei's basic strategy is to pursue high functionality. In addition to 5G, it is also committed to developing semiconductor packaging substrates and high-density printed circuit boards (HDI).
Asahi Kasei Group is a comprehensive chemical manufacturer founded in 1922. After more than 90 years of development, the company's business has expanded to three areas: the "materials" field consisting of textile, chemical, and electronic materials business, and the "residential" The "health" area composed of medical, medical, and emergency services.
In addition to entering the 5G materials market, the company has made new progress in the field of lithium battery diaphragms, window films, conductive films and other fields.
◤ Lithium battery diaphragm
Asahi Kasei said that in the face of the increasing popularity of electric vehicles in Europe, the company will focus on the marketing and development of local lithium battery separators and is committed to developing next-generation products and innovative production processes to improve battery performance and safety. At the same time, Asahi Kasei will also expand the market and business of electric vehicles by strengthening the quality and quantity of lithium battery separators.
It is understood that Asahi Kasei's wet process diaphragm production capacity will reach 700 million square meters in 2020 and dry process diaphragms will be 400 million square meters, for a total of 1.1 billion square meters. After strengthening the production system, Asahi Kasei's lithium battery separator capacity is expected to reach 1 billion square meters of wet-process separators and 550 million square meters of dry-process separators in 2021.
The company also stated that the diaphragm market is developing rapidly centering on in-vehicle applications such as electric vehicles and power storage (ESS) applications. The company will also establish a wet and dry diaphragm production system with an annual output of 3 billion square meters in 2025.
◤ Transparent heating film
Recently, Asahi Kasei has successfully developed a transparent heating film that can be attached to the rear window of automobiles, etc. At present, the company has issued proposals to automobile manufacturers. The material uses copper oxide ink, and a mesh-like fine wiring is applied to the transparent film. The surface temperature can be increased by energization to prevent blurred vision caused by cloudy days.
The company claims that their goal is to achieve large-scale commercial use in 3-5 years.
Asahi Kasei said that they have mature technology in the field of copper oxide ink, so they can also arrange copper oxide particles in a very thin line width to make the current smooth.
Moreover, because the total light transmittance of this product is as high as 96%, it is more convenient for the overall design of the car body than the anti-yin agent currently on the market. At the same time, the company pointed out that copper oxide ink can not only be wired on the film, but also directly on the surface of other curved materials. Therefore, this material can be used not only on the rear window glass, but also on the surface of lamps, antennas and other products.
In the second half of this year, the company will provide customers with film samples of about 25 cm.
◤ Transparent conductive film
In April news, Asahi Kasei has launched a transparent conductive film, suitable for large-screen touch sensors such as electronic paper, and other components are under development.
It is understood that Asahi Kasei's technology for high-resolution continuous printing to form fine circuit patterns on large-area films has been established, and transparent conductive films are expected to be commercialized in 2020. At present, the Shizuoka prefecture factory has introduced a 25-cm-wide roll-shaped film manufacturing equipment, and is preparing to deliver samples within this year; large-area technology is also being developed, and it is expected to have supply capacity in 2022 to provide 1 meter wide product.
Asahi Kasei has developed a cylindrical printing plate through industry-university cooperation, realizing a seamless circuit technology for printing seamless films on films. The precision of film transport is 1 μm, and the production technology of position deviation detection in nanometers has been developed, which breaks through the difficulty of having to choose between large area and precision in the past.
It is reported that the transparent conductive film printed by this technology can draw sharp thin lines of 250nm. The precision of the circuit pattern can make the light transmittance better under the same resistance condition, or lower the resistance under the same light transmittance. In addition, the double-sided circuit printing of a single film can also be achieved, which improves the freedom of design of parts.