Aramid fiber is mainly divided into two types, para-aramid fiber (PPTA) and meta-aramid fiber (PMIA). Since the 1960s, aramid fiber was successfully developed by DuPont Company of the United States and took the lead in industrialization. In more than 30 years, aramid fiber has gone through the transition from military strategic materials to civilian materials, and its price has also been reduced by nearly half. At present, foreign aramid fiber is becoming more and more mature in both research and development level and large-scale production. In the field of aramid fiber production, para-aramid fiber has the fastest development, and its production capacity is mainly concentrated in Japan, the United States and Europe. For example, Kevlar fiber from DuPont, Twaron fiber from Akzo Nobel (merged with Teijin), Technora fiber from Teijin, Japan and Terlon fiber from Russia. The varieties of meta-aramid fiber are Nomex, Conex, Fenelon fiber and so on. Dupont in the United States is a pioneer in the development of aramid fiber. They are world-class in the research and development of new products, production specifications and market share. At present, there are more than ten brands of Kevlar fiber, such as Kevlar-49 and Kevlar-29, and each brand has dozens of products. Dupont announced last year that it would expand the production capacity of Kevlar fiber, and the expansion project is expected to be completed by the end of this year. Not to be outdone, Teijin, Hearst and other well-known enterprises producing aramid fiber have expanded their production or joined forces, and actively explored the market, hoping to become a new force in this sunrise industry.
Acordis recently developed a high-performance ultra-fine para-aramid fiber (Twaron) product, which is neither flammable nor molten, but also has high strength and great cutting resistance. It can be mainly used to produce various textiles and clothing equipment with high temperature resistance and cutting resistance, such as coated and uncoated fabrics, knitted products and needled felts. The fineness of Twaron superfine filament is only 60% of that of para-aramid fiber commonly used in occupational safety clothing. When it is used to weave gloves, its cutting resistance is improved by 10%. When it is used to produce woven fabrics and knitted products, it feels softer and more comfortable to use. Twaron anti-cutting gloves are mainly used in automobile manufacturing, glass industry and metal parts factories, and can also produce leg protectors for forest industry and provide anti-damage equipment for public transportation industry. Twaron’s flame-retardant and heat-resistant properties can be used to provide fire brigade with protective suits and carpets, as well as heat-resistant and fire-resistant clothing for high-temperature operation departments such as casting, furnaces and glass factories, and to produce flame-retardant and fire-resistant coating materials for aircraft seats. Using this high-performance fiber can also create automobile tires, cooling hoses, V-belts and other parts, optical fiber cables and bulletproof vests and other protective equipment, and can also replace asbestos as friction materials and sealing materials.
According to statistics of relevant departments, the total demand of aramid fiber in the world was 360,000 tons/year in 2001, and it will reach 500,000 tons/year in 2005. The global demand for aramid fiber is increasing. As a new high-performance fiber, aramid fiber has entered a period of rapid development.
Compared with the booming overseas aramid fiber industry, the localization of aramid fiber has just started. Due to the late development of aramid fiber in China and the blockade and monopoly of core technology by foreign companies, there is a certain gap between China’s aramid fiber technology level, product grade and production capacity and foreign developed countries. It is reported that in recent years, China’s electronics, construction and tire industries have developed rapidly, which has led to the rapid growth of aramid fiber consumption in China. There are two main reasons why the localization of aramid fiber in China is so difficult: first, it is difficult to break through the technical bottleneck of production; Second, most raw materials need to be imported, especially domestic solvents can not pass the customs. But it is precisely because it is a new thing in China and the market is far from saturated that it deserves our attention and development. At present, the development of aramid fiber production in China has been put on the agenda, aramid fiber has been listed in the catalogue of high-tech products encouraged by the state, and the government has also listed “the application technology development of aramid fiber in bias tire and synchronous belt” as a major research and industrialization topic of China’s rubber industry in the Tenth Five-Year Plan. Especially in the development and production of meta-production line aromatic amide, China has made some progress.
Post time: Mar-06-2023