Accelerated pace of phosphorus flame retardant replacing bromine flame retardant Summary: The pace of phosphorus flame retardants replacing bromine flame retardants is accelerating in China. Tags: phosphorus, phosphorus flame retardant, bromine flame retardants, production technology According to Phosphorus Industry China Monthly Report issued by CCM in August, on July 8, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology & Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences (NIMTE) signed a cooperation agreement with Guizhou Yuanyi Mining Group Co., Ltd. (Guizhou Yuanyi) to jointly promote the development and industrialization of phosphorus flame retardant with high-temperature resistance used in engineering plastics. Guizhou Yuanyi has sufficient phosphorus ore resources, processing a phosphorus ore mine and a coal mine in Weng'an County, which is very favorable for the development of phosphorus flame retardants. NIMTE has achieved fruitful results in the synthesis of high-performance halogen-free flame retardants. Just on April 15, NIMTE signed a cooperation agreement with Polyrocks Chemical Co., Ltd. (Polyrocks Chemical) to jointly put forward the development and production of highend phosphorus flame retardants. Polyrocks Chemical is engaged in the production of environmentally friendly halogen-free flame retardants. In recent years, phosphorus flame retardants have drawn more and more attention as an alternative of bromine flame retardants. In China, the capacity of phosphorus flame retardants has reached 150,000t/a as of July 2013, while the production was about 100,000 tonnes in 2012. With the miniaturization trend of electronic products and the development and adoption of tin-free electric welding technology, it's more and more necessary to develop new type of flame retardant with high-temperature resistance, chemical stability, well electric property and mechanical property used in engineering plastics. High-end phosphorus flame retardant is considered to be one of the major development directions. Two factors may accelerate the pace of phosphorus flame retardants, especially relatively high-powered ones, replacing bromine flame retardants. Firstly, many kinds of bromine flame retardants, the most popular flame retardants, have been phased
out
in
more
and
more
countries.
For
example,
a
global
ban
on
hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD), a kind of bromine flame retardant commonly used in insulation, textile and electronics sectors, was issued at the sixth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Stockholm Convention held from April 28–May 10, 2013 in Geneva. In 2009,
two
kinds
of
bromine
flame
retardants—pentabromodiphenyl
ether
and
octabromodiphenyl ether—had already been eliminated. In this context, it's very necessary to find an alternative of bromine flame retardants, and phosphorus flame retardant is a good
option with relatively mature production technology. Secondly, China is a net bromine importer, with the monthly import volume of more than 2,000 tonnes, and 49% of bromine in China is used to produce flame retardants. On July 29, 2013, the government of Weifang City, Shandong Province officially announced that it will shut down 80% of local bromine capacity within three years in consideration of environmental protection. This issue may cause the domestic supply of bromine to become tighter, since the bromine capacity in Weifang City accounts for 60% of China's total capacity. Although it is a development trend that phosphorus flame retardants are gradually replacing bromine flame retardants, some properties of phosphorus flame retardants are not as good as that of bromine flame retardants restricted by the production technology level. Besides, the large scale production of phosphorus flame retardants may be restricted in the future in consideration of the scarcity and non-regeneration of phosphorus resources. Table of Contents of Phosphorus Industry China Monthly Report 1308: Editor's Note Phosphorus Ore Breakthrough in enrichment and sparation of low and medium grade phosphorus ore containing rare earth in China Yellow Phosphorus An overview on China's yellow phosphorus industry in H1 2013 Phosphate Fertilizer CPFIA puts forward eight suggestions to ease phosphate fertilizer overcapacity Xingfa Group's net profit slumped sharply in H1 2013 Fine Phosphate Chemicals Hubei Zhongfu Chemical started the construction of a 330,000t/a sulfuric acid project Accelerated pace of phosphorus flame retardant replacing bromine flame retardant Xin Zhong Yuan Chemical and Mid-Union Phosphorus to found a fine phosphorus chemical industry cluster Global Insight Ma'aden joins hands with Mosaic and SABIC to develop a world-class phosphate production facility Brief News Shikefeng Sichuan Branch plans for technology reformation for its long-acting and slowreleasing fertilizer program China's phosphate fertilizer manufacturers suffer heavy loss in the first five months of 2013 Supply & Demand Market review of prime phosphate chemical in July 2013 Import & Export International trade of phosphate chemicals in June 2013 Price Update Price monitoring of some phosphate chemicals in July 2013 Phosphorus Industry China Monthly Report, issued by CCM on 15th, keeps providing the
latest company dynamics related to China’s phosphorus industry, and market analysis on supply and demand, import and export as well as global insight. About CCM CCM is dedicated to market research in China, Asia-Pacific Rim and global market. With a staff of more than 150 dedicated highly-educated professionals, CCM offers Market Data, Analysis, Reports, Newsletters, Buyer-Trader Information, Import/Export Analysis, and Consultancy Service. For more information, please visit http://www.cnchemicals.com. Guangzhou CCM Information Science & Technology Co., Ltd. 17th Floor, Huihua Commercial & Trade Mansion, No.80 Xianlie Zhong Road, Guangzhou 510070, China Tel: 86-20-37616606 Email: econtact@cnchemicals.com