Carbon Nanotubes (CNTs) are effectively revolutionizing the material science industry. One of the most important trends being followed by companies in the CNT market is that of applying tactics and strategies to lower the prices of CNTs. While the price of Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes (MWCNTs) has been moderate, the price of Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes (SWCNTs) is exceptionally high in the current market scenario. The CNTs are becoming a talking point due to their inherently dynamic physical properties like light weight, efficient thermal, electrical properties and resistance to chemicals.

During the course of our research and analysis of CNT market, Tausifur Reza, Lead Analyst at BIS Research, spoke to Cedric de Villepin, Business Development Manager of Nanocyl SA, known as a carbon nanotube industry thought leader, who possesses more than 5 years of experience in developing new businesses for Nanocyl. He primarily spoke about key dynamics occurring in Carbon Nanotube industry. The following transcript provides an insightful take on major developments occurring in the CNT industry:

Tausifur: How is the CNT industry progressing, according to you, and who are the top players currently operating in the CNT business?

Cedric: The carbon nanotube (CNT) business is a consolidating market. Overall, it’s currently doing well. CNT market is largely dominated by the MWCNTs, in terms of value and volume. The single wall carbon nanotubes SWCNTs, on the other hand, are not yet commercialized and will probably take more than 5 years to be fully commercialized, due to their high prices. They are mostly used for very specific applications.

CNT market is dominated by some of the prominent players which include Nanocyl, Arkema, Cnano Technology, Showa Denko, and Toray industries. High manufacturing costs are expected to remain a key challenge for CNT market players. Nanocyl is probably the largest producer of MWCNTs globally. In the field of SWCNTs, OCSiAl is one of the prominent market players.

Tausifur: Which type of CNT, according to you, has the largest market share? What is its market share independently?

Cedric: MWCNTs definitely acquire the largest market share by value and volume. It accounts for a market share of more than 90% by value in 2015. The SWCNTs, on the other hand, have a low market occupancy by volume. By volume, SWCNT market is quite small-scale, accounting for a market share of less than 1% of total CNT globally.

Tausifur: What, according to you is the price trend of SWCNTs and MWCNTs currently in the market? Can you tell us regarding the price overview of CNTs?

Cedric: The SWCNTs are quite expensive. Their price range starts from $ 2,000 per kilogram and goes up to $ 10,000. However it’s really difficult to standardize the average price of SWCNTs but more or less it must be around $ 4000 to $ 4500 at the manufacturer level. That does not make them competitive.

The MWCNTs are comparatively much cheaper, costing < $ 100. The prices at the end user level would be slightly different. The CNTs are not always directly used by the end user. Rather at times, it goes through the supply chain consisting of compounder then molder and then finally the end user. This is the reason why the prices are different at the end user level and at the manufacturer level. The prices of CNTs are expected to decrease as their application areas increase.

Tausifur: How is the supply chain flow of carbon nanotube industry from manufacturer to end user?

Cedric: We are basically CNT manufacturers. The CNTs after being manufactured generally go to the compounder, which then goes to the molder and then finally to the end user.
The CNTs from the CNT manufacturers are supplied to the CNT compounders either directly or through distributors. The CNT compounds are then supplied to the CNT molders which mold them into desired shape and size for use in different applications.
After the CNT molder, the CNTs finally go to the end user where they are priced slightly higher than earlier due to these extra processes added in the supply chain.

Tausifur: Which region is the leading market of CNTs? What is the percentage occupancy of other regions in the global CNT market?

Cedric: Asia is a major market leader in the CNT business by market share. It occupies more than 40% of the overall market share. APAC is expected to remain one of the largest markets in the forecast period due to the growing end use industry and the shift of manufacturing process towards APAC due to lower labor costs in China and SE Asia. The competition in APAC is quite high due to a large number of CNT manufacturing competitors in the region, which is why the actual price of CNTs can be lower in APAC compared to other regions.
Europe market is the 2nd largest, followed by North America. Middle East and Africa are accounting for a market share of less than 5%.

Tausifur: Which application area according to you, involves the maximum use of CNTs?

Cedric: Polymer industry acquires the largest market share, where CNTs are much more competitive and performant than Carbon Blacks. It will continue to have the large share in the market in the foreseeable future. In this field, Automotive and Electronics industries are the largest in terms of market share by value and volume. The next sector would be energy sector. ‘Others’ sector is also prominent, specifically rubbers, epoxies, medical and health care industries.

Tausifur: What do you have to say about the global production and consumption scenario of the CNT market?

Cedric: The global production capacity of CNT is probably about the double of the actual production of CNTs. The actual production of global CNT market should be in the range of 3000-3500 tons per year. Most of the companies are not yet utilizing 50% of their capacity. But most of these companies use several small production reactors, which means that a higher production would lead to production on several different reactors hence more product variability. On the other hand, Nanocyl is focusing its production on one large reactor in order to guarantee the best product stability and quality. CNT industry is growing at a rate of more than 15% and is expected to grow at a CAGR 15-25% between FY 2016-2021.

BIS Research published an exhaustive report on “Global Carbon Nanotube Market” earlier this month. The report provides an in-depth analysis of the key development strategies and market trend dynamics which includes drivers, restraints and opportunities prevailing in the Global Carbon Nanotube Market. For further queries, please write to us at sales@bisresearch.com or call us at : +1 650 228 0182