| |
The butyl elastomers business is very consolidated. Worldwide, there are only six producers of butyl elastomers left in the market. The leading world producers are ExxonMobil, LANXESS and Nizhnekamskneftekhim (in Nizhnekamsk, Russia). ExxonMobil is the largest butyl elastomers producer in the world. The company supplies about 50% of the world market. LANXESS has an approximate market share of 25%. The new emerging player in the global market during the last few years has been Nizhnekamskneftekhim, the third-largest producer in the world. At the projected growth rate of the butyl elastomers market for 2007–2012, a new world-scale plant (100 thousand metric tons) will be necessary every two to three years.
Butyl rubber’s most outstanding characteristic is its low permeability to air and other gases, such as carbon dioxide, helium, hydrogen and nitrogen. More than eight times better than natural rubber in air impermeability, butyl rubber is widely used in inner tubes, air cushions, pneumatic springs and the like. Butyl rubber is also noted for high electrical resistivity and excellent resistance to ozone and weathering, oxidation, heat (thermal stability), vibration damping, moisture and inorganic chemicals. Some of butyl rubber’s disadvantages are low resilience, only fair physical strength and limited resistance to hydrocarbon solvents. In the case of vibration damping, it is not the first choice because it is too expensive compared with natural rubber. It is good for body mounts and suspension bumpers. A major disadvantage of nonhalogenated butyl rubber is its inability to be blended and vulcanized with highly unsaturated elastomers such as styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR), polybutadiene and natural rubber.
The following chart shows world supply/demand for butyl elastomers on a percentage basis:
The largest Asian markets are China, Japan, India and the Republic of Korea. For Japan and the Republic of Korea modest growth is expected. China and India will be the fastest-growing markets, with high consumption growth rates expected annually through 2012.
|
