Ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) separators have broad development prospects, and the future industry development difficulties have yet to be overcome.

UHMWPE, ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene, is a type of third-generation high-performance fiber. It refers to an unbranched linear polyethylene with a molecular weight of more than 1.5 million. It has excellent wear resistance, corrosion resistance, machinability, and hydrophobicity. , impact resistance, self-lubrication and other advantages, it can be made into fibers, films, pipes and other materials for use in textile, papermaking, electronics, petroleum, chemical, medical, industrial, aviation, military and other fields.

UHMWPE separator is ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene separator, which refers to a separator material made of UHMWPE powder through special industrial preparation. On the basis of inheriting all the advantages of UHMWPE, UHMWPE separators also have good air permeability, puncture resistance, heat resistance, dimensional stability, low friction coefficient, high melt viscosity, long service life and other characteristics. It is mainly used as Lithium battery separators are used in high-efficiency, high-power lithium battery manufacturing scenarios.

As a high-end lithium battery separator product, UHMWPE separators melt into a gel state at high temperatures and have excellent safety protection against short circuits and explosions when the battery is overcharged or the temperature rises suddenly. With the advantages and functions of UHMWPE separators constantly highlighted, it has become the main development direction of lithium battery separator materials.

According to the “2023-2028 Ultra-High Molecular Weight Polyethylene UHMWPE Separator Industry Market In-depth Research and Investment Prospect Forecast Analysis Report” released by the Industrial Research Center shows that currently driven by the rapid development of the domestic new energy vehicle industry, the shipment volume of the lithium battery separator market continues to increase. In 2022, my country’s lithium battery separator shipments will be approximately 13.52 billion square meters, a year-on-year increase of 59.6%. As a type of lithium battery separator with better performance, UHMWPE separators are expected to have increasing market penetration and broad market development prospects in the future as the safety and functionality requirements of new energy vehicles continue to upgrade.

UHMWPE separators have strict requirements on particle size and micropore structure consistency, high production technical barriers, and high industry entry barriers. At present, domestic UHMWPE separator manufacturers mainly include Chongqing Yuntianhua Newmi Technology, Hebei Jinli New Energy Technology, Shenzhen Xingyuan Material Technology, Suzhou Jieli New Energy Materials, Liaoyuan Hongtu Lithium Battery Separator Technology, Shanghai Enjie New Material Technology, etc.

At present, the development of my country’s UHMWPE separator industry is still restricted by factors such as the low level of localization of raw materials and production equipment and weak process technology research and development capabilities. There is still huge room for growth in the industry in the future. For example, in terms of raw materials, due to the late start of the domestic UHMWPE industry, the output of UHMWPE for lithium battery separators is low and the dependence on imports is strong. In 2022, its domestic import volume has exceeded 15,000 tons. The main suppliers include Japan’s Mitsui Chemicals, Ticona, Korea Petrochemical, etc.

There are only a few companies in my country with the mass production capacity of UHMWPE for lithium battery separators. There are only a few companies such as Nanjing Celanese, Yangzi Petrochemical, and Dongfang Shenghong. Industry analysts said that in the future, domestic UHMWPE separator upstream companies will need to continue to improve their competitiveness and expand their products. development efforts to continuously reduce dependence on raw material imports.