Polyimide is a kind of high molecular polymer containing a cyclic imide group in a molecular chain, which can be classified into a homo-benzene type PI, a soluble PI, a polyamide-imide (PAI), and a polyether imide ( PEI). As a special engineering material, it has been widely used in aerospace, microelectronics, separation membrane, laser, etc. In view of its excellent performance, it is also known as the 'problem for problem solving'. It is generally considered that there is no PI will not have today's microelectronics technology'.
Polyimide (PI)
PI materials have excellent high temperature resistance, low temperature resistance, high strength and high modulus, high creep resistance, high dimensional stability, low thermal expansion coefficient, high electrical insulation, low dielectric constant and low loss, radiation resistance, corrosion resistance, etc. It has the characteristics of low vacuum volatiles, less volatile condensable materials, etc. It can be processed into polyimide film, high temperature engineering plastics, matrix resin for composite materials, high temperature resistant binder, fiber and foam. Therefore, it has broad application prospects and great commercial value in many high-tech fields.
The PI monomer is synthesized from a dibasic anhydride and a diamine, and is subjected to low-temperature polycondensation in a polar solvent to obtain a soluble polyamic acid, which is formed into a film or spun and heated to about 300 ° C to be dehydrated to a ring to be converted into PI; Products are mainly used in aerospace, electrical insulation, liquid crystal display, automotive medical, atomic energy, such as film, coating, fiber, engineering plastics, composites, adhesives, foams, separation membranes, liquid crystal aligning agents, photoresists, etc. Satellite, nuclear submarine, microelectronics, precision machinery packaging, etc.
Global market and pattern
PI technology is oligopolistic in the world, and the technology is tightly sealed. PI film is developing well, and there are many giants with technology, but PI film is still a high-tech barrier industry. At present, global production capacity is still mainly monopolized by a few foreign companies. , including DuPont, Japan, Zhonghua, Korea SKPI, and Japan Ube Industries Co., Ltd., etc.
The most promising 'engineering plastic' in the 21st century - polyimide
PI fiber, PI coating, PI engineering plastic technology is only concentrated in the hands of very few companies, almost monopolizing the market. For example, the supply of PI fiber is mainly concentrated in Germany's Evonik P84 fiber and China's Changchun Gaoqi's polyamide fiber, its application field Wide, the demand market is expanding.
The most promising 'engineering plastic' in the 21st century - polyimide
The United States, Europe, and Japan are the world's most important consumer markets for PI. For example, the major consumer sectors in the United States are plastics; Japan's main consumer segments are thin films and plastics; and the future Asia Pacific region will be the most important growth market. With aerospace, In the automotive, electronics industry and other fields of rapid development, PI applications continue to expand, and the market is huge. Marketsand Markets expects flexible printed circuits to become the largest and fastest growing application area in the global PI film market during 2017-2022; In the global PI film market in 2016, electronics and automobiles occupy the first and second market share respectively, while the aerospace industry is expected to develop significantly in 2017-2022; in the future, the Asia-Pacific region will become the largest PI film market, China, India, Japan and South Korea are the main players in the PI film market in this region.
Foreign companies and progress
At present, the foreign PI industry is concentrated in a small number of enterprises in a few countries. For example, PI fiber products, its production and sales are mainly concentrated in Evonik, Germany; PI film technology is in the hands of DuPont, Zhonghua and Ube. Saudi Basic Industries Corporation and South Korea SKPI The company's PI products also have a place in the world market, each with its own advantages.
PI technology barriers are high, companies have strict protection of intellectual property rights. On May 24, 2017, South Korea's SKPI US branch infringement of Japan's Zhonghua PI film intellectual property case finally settled. The case lasted two years, the US local court judged South Korea SKPI compensated Japan's Zhonghua for about 13.49 million US dollars.
Relevant information about major PI film manufacturers and their products abroad:
At present, the global PI market is developing steadily. According to DuPont's third quarter financial report for 2017, Vespel® engineering plastics are gaining momentum in the aerospace and electronics markets. Ube's financial statements for the first half of 2017 indicate that the PI business is due to the circuit board. Sales of the main film increased, sales were bullish;
Zhonghua's financial report for the first half of 2017 also pointed out that as the demand for new models of smartphone manufacturers will increase production capacity and promote the sales growth of PI film, the supply and demand system of PI film will be adjusted in time according to the development of digital equipment.
All major companies have increased their research and development efforts, and strive to introduce new ones, but there is no such thing as increasing production capacity. On November 14, 2017, SABIC announced that it will launch a number of differentiated products based on high performance material combinations in 2018, including EXTEMTM thermoplastic polyimide (TPI) resin filament
Ube's FY17 financial year report stated that it should give priority to getting rid of the PI deficit. The film temporarily maintains the status quo and accelerates the research of coatings. Ube's mid-term business plan decided to re-examine the business model for PI business, rebuild business, and concentrate on coatings. Developed flexible display materials, increased the market share of circuit boards (FPC) in the film and expanded the sales of double-sided COF films.
Domestic companies and progress
Due to the high production cost of PI, complicated technical processes and poor product stability, China's industrialization process is slow. However, the application of PI in China has been extended to aviation, aerospace, microelectronics, environmental protection, transportation and other fields.
China's PI industry is spread all over the country, and strong enterprises are concentrated in Taiwan, the Pearl River Delta and the Northeast. Taiwan's Damai Technology also has a certain share in the world market, and its revenue is also rising. Changchun Gaoqi's Polyamide Fiber and The original special papers are all in the world leading in technology. Other companies rely on scientific research institutes, and R&D investment and production investment are both.
However, compared with foreign advanced countries, there is still a certain gap in the overall strength of domestic enterprises. Throughout the enterprises, the scale of the installation is small, and most of the production facilities are only 100 tons; the products are relatively single, mainly based on PI film, and other types of output. Rarely; the product is not refined enough, and the application field is mainly film and molding compound.
Major producers and products of domestic PI film, technical capacity, R&D information:
