Why is the price of raw silica material increasing sharply?
Recently, the entire range of silicone raw materials has skyrocketed, with the price rising by one-third. At present, the price of silicone raw materials has exceeded the 20,000 mark and is expected to move toward higher prices. Especially this year due to the impact of the epidemic at home and abroad, the market supply and demand is not strong, but still causing the price of silicone raw materials to skyrocket? The main reasons for the recent surge in silica raw materials is as follows.
The main reason for the surge in raw materials of silica gel is the sharp increase in the prices of raw collagen materials and DMC. Raw rubber is used as the main raw material for the production of mixed silicone rubber, and DMC is the main raw material for producing raw rubber. Once the price of DMC rises, it will cause the overall price of our silicone industry to rise. Because the price of DMC materials has risen sharply recently, it directly affects the prices of raw rubber and silicone materials.
So why did the price fluctuate not much in the first half of the year, but the price started to rise wildly in the second half of the year?
This is mainly related to the foreign epidemic situation. In the first half of the year, due to the outbreak of the foreign epidemic situation, foreign trade exports fell sharply, resulting in a downturn in the market economy, so the price of silicone raw materials did not fluctuate much. Since entering the second half of the year, Chinese companies have resumed work and production for some time, and production has basically returned to normal levels. Coupled with the second outbreak of foreign epidemics, many foreign orders have shifted to domestic factory production. In particular, the price of the entire chemical industry has been rising across the board recently, and DMC materials have also been directly affected.
As an important organic compound, DMC materials not only have important applications in the silicone industry. And because DMC has non-toxic properties, it can replace highly toxic phosgene, methyl chloroformate, dimethyl sulfate, etc. as a methylating agent or carbonylation agent to improve the safety of production operations and reduce environmental pollution. As a solvent, DMC can replace freon, trichloroethane, trichloroethylene, benzene, xylene, etc. for paint coatings, cleaning solvents, etc. As a gasoline additive, DMC can increase its octane number and oxygen content, thereby improving its anti-knock resistance. In addition, DMC can also be used as an additive for detergents, surfactants and softeners. Due to its wide range of uses, DMC is known as the “new cornerstone” of today’s organic synthesis.
As DMC materials are widely used in all walks of life, once the demand in other industries increases, the supply of DMC materials will exceed the demand and the price will rise. In addition, the market demand in the first half of this year was not strong, and material prices basically tended to run at low cost. DMC manufacturers and raw rubber manufacturers have a speculative mentality. With the help of strong market demand and the second outbreak of foreign epidemics, this has contributed to the recent silica gel Raw materials skyrocketed.
