Chinese AC foaming market to increase by 10% over the next three years

The Chinese Azodicarbonamide (AC) foaming agent market has seen its production capacity and output levels increase continuously over the past five years, recording compound annual growth rates (CAGRs) of 7.96% and 10.70% over 2006-2011 respectively.

In 2011, the total capacity and output of AC foaming agent reached 220,000 tons and 183,700 tons in China. With the continuous development of traditional application fields like the footwear industry and the leather industry as well as the rapid growth of emerging application fields like the rubber and plastic heat insulation material industry, the demand for AC foaming agent has been prosperous, and the output will maintain a growth rate of more than 10% in the next three years.

AC foaming agent, also known as ADC foaming agent, is a widely used organic thermal decomposition foaming agent with the largest gas evolution and the most superior performance.

The raw materials for the production of AC foaming agent mainly include caustic soda, urea and chlorine. AC foaming agent enterprises mainly produce chlorine and caustic soda using their own chlor-alkali production facilities, and purchase urea from other enterprises. China's urea and caustic soda market is currently oversupplied, which is conducive to the cost control of AC foaming agent.

In recent years, affected by government policies, China's urea export has been reduced, and the oversupply in the urea market has become increasingly serious. In 2011, China's urea output reached 26.57 million tons, up 5.6% year on year, and the apparent consumption was 23 million tons, of which industrial urea accounted for 20%.

In 2011, the designed production capacity of top 3 enterprises, SOPO Group, Selon Industrial and Ningxia Risheng, accounted for 59.1% of the total capacity of the Chinese AC foaming agent market. With the rapid development of the AC foaming agent market, major manufacturers have increased capital investment to expand production capacity.

For more information on the Chinese AC foaming market, see the latest research: Chinese AC Foaming Market

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