SAN FRANCISCO—The global thermoplastic elastomers market is expected to reach $19.8 billion by 2022, according to a new report by Grand View Research Inc.
The report claimed high substitution rate of thermoplastic elastomers—such as thermoplastic polyurethane and thermoplastic polyolefins—as an alternative to EPDM in construction materials is expected to drive TPE demand over the forecast period.
Additionally, growing demand for lightweight, high performance materials from the automotive industry to improve fuel efficiency by reducing overall weight of automobiles is expected to fuel TPE demand. Grand Valley Research added that volatile prices of key raw material such as styrene, propylene and polyurethane are expected to remain a key challenge for market participants.
SBC was the single largest product segment and accounted for 47.1 percent of total market volume in 2014. San Francisco-based Grand Valley said increasing demand for SIS, particularly in China and India, in automotive applications is expected to drive the product segment growth over the next seven years. Paving and roofing was the leading application segment for SBC and accounted for almost 35 percent of the product volume in 2014.
Further key findings from the study suggest:
• Global thermoplastic elastomers market was 4.01 million tons in 2014 and is expected to grow at a annual rate of 4.8 percent from 2015 to 2022.
• Thermoplastic vulcanizates are expected to witness the highest growth of 6.7 percent from 2015 to 2022. Increasing demand for specialty high performance plastics in automotive industry is expected to drive TPV demand.
• Asia-Pacific was the largest regional market and accounted for more than 40 percent of total consumption in 2014. The regional market is characterized by high industrial growth as a result of favorable government policies and monetary framework encouraging private investments in manufacturing sector. China and India are major TPE consumers that are expected to grow exponentially over the forecast period. These two countries accounted for approximately 66 percent of the regional demand in 2014.
• North America was the leading TPO consumer and accounted for 35.5 percent of the product volume in 2014. Its increasing demand in industrial and construction applications is expected to drive the regional growth.
• Global TPE industry is moderately concentrated with the top four companies accounting for more than 45 percent of the overall market share in 2014. Major companies operating globally include Arkema, Bayer MaterialScience, Dynasol Elastomers, Evonik, Kraton and Dow Chemical Co.
For more information, Grand View Research website.