Carbon fiber is a high-strength, high-modulus, high-performance fiber material. The density of carbon fiber is less than 1/4 of steel, and the strength is 5-7 times that of steel. It is widely used in aerospace, energy equipment, transportation, sports and leisure, etc. field. After years of research and development and about ten years of industrial construction, China has established its own carbon fiber technology system and a relatively complete carbon fiber industry, and has initially formed an industrialized carbon fiber R & D and production platform, gradually breaking the long-term technical blockade of Japan and the United States. And market monopoly.
The early carbon fiber can be traced back to the end of the 19th century. In the mid-20th century, developed countries invested a lot of manpower and material resources to study carbon fiber, which was applied in the field of military aerospace. Since then, the Osaka Institute of Industrial Technology in Japan invented the method of manufacturing carbon fiber by PAN fiber. Various carbon fiber preparations Technology has emerged one after another. Since the beginning of the 21st century, carbon fiber production process technology has matured. With the expansion of carbon fiber application fields, the market demand for carbon fiber has increased dramatically, and the carbon fiber industry has matured.
China's carbon fiber demand has maintained a steady upward trend. In 2018, the domestic carbon fiber market demand was 31,000 tons, an increase of 32% year-on-year. It is expected that the compound annual growth rate will be 12% in the future. The domestic market demand will reach 38,900 tons in 2020.
1. Global demand for carbon fiber by sector has risen
Carbon fiber composite materials have the characteristics of light weight and high strength, and are active in various uses. Including the pursuit of light and easy-to-use high-performance sports goods, the pursuit of lightweight and high-performance materials for spaceflight aerospace vehicles, and pressure vessels, automobiles, windmills, ships, civil engineering and other general Industrial use. According to carbon statistics of Sailo Carbon Fiber, in 2018, the global carbon fiber application segment has the most wind turbine blades and aerospace defense fields, reaching 22,000 tons and 21,000 tons, respectively. The most significant growth is in the auto parts sector, with a compound growth rate of 33% in demand from 2013 to 2018.
From the perspective of the global market, the carbon fiber demand in the global market was 92,600 tons in 2018, and it is expected that the global demand will reach 112,100 tons in 2020.
In terms of demand structure, more than half of the total carbon fiber materials are used in the industrial field, wind power blades account for 24%, aerospace applications 23%, sports and leisure fields 15%, and the automotive industry 12% The total of the four accounts for 74%. Among them, the carbon fiber consumption of sports and leisure products is declining year by year.
From the perspective of production capacity, the global carbon fiber market is basically monopolized by Japanese and American companies. In 2018, the world carbon fiber production capacity was 155,000 tons. From a regional perspective, the United States produces 37,300 tons of 24%, Japan produces 29,100 tons, accounting for 19%, and China produces 26,800 tons of carbon fiber, accounting for 19%.
However, from the perspective of enterprises, Japanese companies account for about 58% of the global small-bundle carbon fiber market, of which 27% are made by Toray of Japan, 18% are made by Toho of Japan, and 13% are made by Mitsubishi; The market concentration is higher, basically controlled by Japan Zoltek and Germany SGL (Note: Zoltek was acquired by Toray in 2013), Zoltek accounts for 49% of the world, and Germany SGL accounts for 33% of the world.
2. Chinese carbon fiber companies are in the stage of technological improvement and capacity expansion
From the overall supply and demand situation, the main carbon fiber consumption regions in the world are still concentrated in the United States, Europe and Japan. According to the statistics of Sai Carbon Fiber Technology, China's carbon fiber demand has maintained a steady upward trend. In 2018, the domestic carbon fiber market demand was 31,000 tons, an increase of 32% year-on-year. Reached 38,900 tons.
At present, the performance of China's T300 grade carbon fiber has reached the international level, and it is mainly used in aerospace and sports and leisure fields. T700 grade carbon fiber has been built into a 10 million-ton production line. Low-cost dry-jet wet-sprayed T700 grade carbon fiber has achieved large-scale production; China's first Thousand-ton T800 raw silk production line was put into production by Zhongfu Shenying production line in 2016; however, carbon fiber domestic enterprises above T800 level are still in small-scale test, and the technology still has a gap compared with Toray. China's carbon fiber production above T800 and T1000 grades is in the stage of batch trial production, while foreign Toray companies have achieved relatively mature high-molecular products. The top three of China Carbon Fiber's production capacity are: JSZF Carbon Fiber Technology Group, JSHS Carbon Fiber Technology Group and ZGJGt Carbon Fiber Group.