NMP Market Analysis（2）

3、Application of NMP in the field of new polymer materials:

(1) Production of polyimide: NMP, because of its strong stability and low toxicity, plays the role of reaction diluting solvent in the process of low-temperature polycondensation of dianhydride and diamine to produce polyimide (PI). PI has the highest flame retardant grade (UL-94), excellent mechanical properties, and extremely high thermal stability, and is widely used as the top material of the polymer material pyramid. Its application fields and specific applications are as follows: PI film and fiber are its main application forms, and there is a significant gap between domestic production capacity and technical level and international giants. Most enterprises' technical strength is difficult to meet the requirements of preparing high-performance PI materials, And the scale is generally small, with a low market share. In this market context, The state has repeatedly issued policies to encourage the development of the PI industry: The Guiding Opinions on the High Quality Development of the Chemical Fiber Industry clearly requires: "Improve the production and application level of high-performance fibers, improve the production and application level of carbon fiber, aramid fiber, ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber, polyimide fiber, Polyphenylene sulfide fiber, and improve the quality consistency and batch stability of high-performance fibers." The Guiding Catalogue for the First Application Demonstration of Key New Materials (2021 Edition) also clearly classified polyimide fiber as "key strategic material", I-line photosensitive polyimide insulation material, polyimide alignment agent for liquid crystal display as "new electronic chemical material", and polyimide with low dielectric constant and low loss as "other advanced chemical materials". Under the guidance of national policies, the scale of domestic PI market will continue to expand, and there will be a large space for Import substitution industrialization in the future.

② Production of para aramid: para aramid (PPTA) has outstanding advantages such as high strength, high temperature resistance, impact resistance, and corrosion resistance. Its strength is 5-6 times that of steel wire, but its weight is only about 1/5 of that of steel wire. It is an important strategic material for both military and civilian use, and can be used for strengthening aerospace structural components, missiles in national defense and military industry, bulletproof protection, and other fields. It can also be used as friction materials for transportation vehicles, sports and leisure goods Filter materials and many other industrial fields.

In industrial production, the preparation of para aramid fibers must be carried out in anhydrous solvents, usually through low-temperature polycondensation reaction in the NMP calcium chloride solvent system. With the release and implementation of mandatory national standards such as "Protective Clothing Flame retardant Clothing" and "Personal Protective Equipment Allocation Specification", the demand for aramid fiber in industrial tooling will significantly increase; The continuous expansion of the aerospace and rail transit industries, as well as the trend of high-end automobiles, will drive the continuous growth of demand for corresponding aramid fibers. In the next 3-5 years, the rapid development of the aramid fiber industry will inject more force into the increase of NMP market demand.

③ Production of Polyphenylene sulfide: Polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) is known as "the sixth largest engineering plastic in the world" and "one of the eight aerospace materials". It has high corrosion resistance and flame retardancy, and has broad application prospects. In the process of synthesizing PPS using hydrogen sulfide method, in order to provide a better reaction environment, strong polar solvent NMP is usually chosen to condense and synthesize PPS under pressure.

Due to the development of material science and the improvement of plastic modification technology in the world, as well as the performance and cost advantages of Polyphenylene sulfide itself, the substitution of non-ferrous metals and other engineering plastics has been formed, which has expanded the application field and market demand of Polyphenylene sulfide. In recent years, the rise of new energy and 5G communication fields has provided new development opportunities for PPS and its modified materials. Composite modified materials based on PPS for strengthening, toughening, thermal conductivity, low dielectric, and diaphragm materials have a wide demand in the fields of new energy and 5G communication. The high strength and insulation properties of PPS materials make it an ideal material for lightweight new energy vehicles.

4. Application and Industry Development of NMP in Other Fields:

① Lubricating oil refining: the lubricating oil base oil contains a large number of Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, alkanes, and strong polar substances that affect its viscosity and oxidation. To ensure stability during use, the lubricating oil needs to be refined and purified before use.

Due to its high polarity, strong solubility, and low extraction temperature, NMP has gradually replaced phenol and furfural as the main solvent for lubricating oil refining.

② Electronic Product Cleaning Agent: Ultra clean and high-purity grade NMP can be used as a cleaning agent for semiconductors and display panels in the field of electronic chemicals. It is used to remove residual photoresist on the surface and filter other organic components. At the same time, due to the high boiling point of NMP itself, low-pressure heating is used for removal, which will not leave pressure stripes on semiconductors and display panels, which is conducive to the use of fine electronic components.

The entry threshold for the NMP industry is not high. Due to the continuous prosperity of the downstream lithium battery industry, the number of enterprises engaged in NMP production and recycling in the industry is constantly increasing, and the industry scale is constantly expanding. But at the same time, this has also caused the problem of imbalanced development structure in China's NMP industry, with a large number of small and medium-sized enterprises mainly focusing on recycling, and low technological level leading to overcapacity at the low-end and insufficient high-end production capacity in the industry. Taking ultra pure and high-purity NMP as an example, the market requires its purity to be ≥ 99.9% and moisture content to be ≤ 0.01%. Most enterprises in China are unable to produce products of this level on a large scale. With the expansion of the lithium battery and microelectronics markets in the future, the demand for high-purity NMP will become increasingly high. How to quickly and efficiently produce high-purity NMP is the main direction of industry development in the future. The industry structure will be concentrated towards high-end production capacity, and the market share of leading enterprises will further increase.