The market demand for super absorbent resin (SAP) is strong and my country’s supply capacity of high-end products needs to be improved.

Super absorbent resin (SAP), also known as super absorbent polymer, is a new polymer material containing strong hydrophilic groups such as carboxyl and hydroxyl groups. The raw materials of super absorbent resin are high-purity acrylic acid and liquid sodium hydroxide. According to different raw materials, super absorbent resin can be divided into three types: cellulose, starch and synthetic resin.

Super absorbent resin has the characteristics of water retention, water absorption and safety, and is widely used in many fields, including physiological hygiene products, medical supplies, cosmetics, food preservatives, water retention agents, deodorants, etc. At present, physiological hygiene products are the largest demand end for super absorbent resins, including infant diapers, adult incontinence products, and female sanitary napkins. In the future, as the three-child policy takes effect and the aging of the population intensifies, the demand for infant diapers and adult incontinence products will increase significantly, and the market size of super-absorbent resin will also further expand.

The production process of super absorbent resin includes solution polymerization, bulk polymerization and reversed-phase suspension polymerization. Nearly 90% of companies around the world use solution polymerization to produce super absorbent resins. This method has the advantages of high monomer conversion rate and simple polymerization process, and has been widely used in industrial production.

At present, the main manufacturers of super absorbent resin in my country include Yixing Dansen Technology Co., Ltd., Zhejiang Satellite Petrochemical Co., Ltd., Shandong Nuoer Biotechnology Co., Ltd., and Wanhua Chemical Group Co., Ltd. Compared with leading overseas companies, most super absorbent resin companies in my country mainly produce mid-to-low-end products, and homogeneous competition is fierce. There is considerable room for improvement in terms of high-end product R&D capabilities and R&D investment.

According to the “2022-2027 China Super Absorbent Resin (SAP) Industry Market Segment Demand and Development Opportunities Research Report released by the Industrial Research Center span>》shows that in the global market, companies engaged in the research and production of super absorbent resins include BASF of Germany, Evonik of Germany, N-Nippon Shokubai of Japan, Santaya of Japan, Sumitomo Seiko of Japan, etc. Affected by factors such as low human resource costs, many leading overseas companies have begun to build production bases in my country, driving the continuous improvement of my country’s super absorbent resin production capacity. In 2021, my country’s super absorbent resin production capacity will reach 1.639 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 11.2%. However, excess low-end production capacity and insufficient high-end production capacity remain the main challenges facing the development of my country’s super absorbent resin industry.

Industry analysts said that super absorbent resin has excellent performance and has a wide range of applications. Driven by positive factors such as rapid economic development and national policy support, my country’s super absorbent resin downstream industry will develop rapidly, driving its market demand to continue to be released. At present, my country’s super absorbent resin resin production capacity has ranked among the first echelons in the world. However, due to technical limitations, high-end products cannot meet market demand, and the independent research and development capabilities of local enterprises still need to be improved.