Controversial Lifesavers: Ceresana Analyzes the World Market for Flame Retardants

Flame retardants inhibit or prevent from spread of fires, yet, they can also be dangerous for health and environment. In any case, they are sold in ever larger amounts: Worldwide, about 2.15 million tonnes of flame retardants are used per year for plastic products, electronic devices, construction material, and textiles. For the fourth time now, the market research company Ceresana extensively analyzed the global market for these lifesaving yet not unproblematic products. These include halogenated flame retardants based on bromine and chlorine, as well as aluminum trihydroxide (ATH), organophosphorus, antimony compounds (ATO), and rarer types.

Construction Industry Is Main Consumer

The most important sales markets for flame retardants are the construction industry and the electrics and electronics industry: Nearly 53 percent of global demand originated in these two segments. In residential construction, more and more flammable material is used for thermal insulation and for improvement of energy efficiency. Therefore, flame retardants are increasingly processed in insulating foams made of expandable polystyrene (EPS) and polyurethane but also, for example, for rubber products, in adhesives, and in paints and varnishes. The electrics industry needs flame retardants for circuit boards, computer casings, household appliances, and telecommunication devices - especially in engineering plastics such as ABS, polyamide, epoxy, and polycarbonate. The third largest application area for flame retardants is the segment cables and wires followed by products for the transport industry. Especially demand for flame retardants in the transport industry increases: Here, an above-average growth of 2.8% per year is accounted for.

Holding a market share of 37%, ATH is, on a global perspective, the most commonly used flame retardant, followed by brominated compounds. The most important application areas for bromine based flame retardants are electrics & electronics and foams. Brominated flame retardants are very effective, yet, they are treated with hostility by environmentalists. Due to legal provisions, there are significant regional differences: For example, demand for brominated compounds accounts for 6.7% and 12% respectively in Western Europe and North America which is only a fragment of total demand - however, in Asia, their market share amounts to 28%. In the upcoming eight years, brominated and chlorinated flame retardants will presumably account for the lowest growth worldwide. In contrast, Ceresana expects organophosphorus flame retardants that are more environmentally compatible as well as substitute products for halogenated types to increase considerably.

The Study in Brief:

Chapter 1 provides a description and analysis of the global market for flame retardants - including forecasts up to 2023: Demand for and revenues generated with flame retardants are provided for each world region.
Chapter 2 analyzes the 16 most important countries and their flame retardants revenues and demand in detail. Demand is split by single applications and product types. Additionally, all important manufacturers of flame retardants are listed according to countries.
Chapter 3 offers a substantiated analysis of the application areas for flame retardants: construction materials, electrics & electronics, cables, transport industry, and others.
Chapter 4 examines demand for individual types of flame retardants: aluminum trihydroxide (ATH), brominated compounds, chlorinated compounds, organophosphorus, antimony compounds (ATO), and other flame retardants. Demand is clearly arranged for each of the 16 countries analyzed in chapter 2 and all world regions.
Chapter 5 provides profiles of the largest manufacturers, clearly arranged according to contact details, turnover, profit, product range, production sites, profile summary, and products. In-depth profiles of 97 producers are given, including e.g. Akzo Nobel N.V., Albemarle Corp., Aluminum Corporation of China Limited (CHALCO), BASF SE, Chemtura Corp., Clariant International Ltd., Huber Engineered Materials, Rio Tinto Group, The Dow Chemical Company, and Tosoh Corp.

Further information: www.ceresana.com/en/market-studies/additives/flame-retardants/

Ceresana is a leading international market research and consultancy company for the industrial sector. For more than 10 years, Ceresana has been supplying several thousand customers from 60 countries with up-to-date market intelligence. Extensive market knowledge creates new prospects for strategic and operational decisions. Ceresana's clients profit from implementation-oriented consulting services, tailor-made single-client studies and more than 100 independent multi-client market studies. Ceresana's analysts are experts in the following markets: Chemicals, plastics, additives, commodities, industrial components, consumer goods, packaging, agriculture, and construction materials.
Learn more about Ceresana at www.ceresana.com/en

Ceresana
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Phone: +49 7531 94293 0
Fax: +49 7531 94293 27
Press Contact: Martin Ebner, m.ebner@ceresana.com

This release was published on openPR.