As a fiber sub-nano material, the calcium sulfate whisker industry is developing well

Calcium sulfate whiskers, also known as gypsum whiskers and gypsum fibers, are new fiber sub-nano materials. According to different water contents, calcium sulfate whiskers are mainly divided into three types: anhydrous calcium sulfate whiskers, hemihydrate calcium sulfate whiskers, and dihydrate calcium sulfate whiskers.

According to the “2022-2027 Calcium Sulfate Whisker Industry In-depth Market Research and Investment Strategy Suggestions Report released by the Industrial Research Center, Natural gypsum is the main raw material of calcium sulfate whiskers. my country is rich in mineral resources and natural gypsum is concentrated in Shandong, Qinghai, Inner Mongolia, Jilin, Hunan, Jiangsu and other places. Shandong has the largest number of gypsum mines, accounting for 65.0% of my country’s total natural gypsum resource reserves. Benefiting from the favorable geographical environment, my country’s natural gypsum production continues to grow, exceeding 230 million tons in 2021, ranking among the top in the world. Stable supply and demand in the raw material market has driven my country’s calcium sulfate whisker production to continue to increase.

Calcium sulfate whiskers are mainly used in rubber products, plastic products, coatings, paper industry, friction materials, medical and health and building materials and other fields. In the papermaking industry, calcium sulfate whiskers, as the main raw material, can fully replace natural plant fibers. Calcium sulfate whiskers are typical short fibers with the advantages of high whiteness, strong adsorption, non-toxic and environmentally friendly, and high retention rate. They can effectively improve paper strength and ash content. According to statistics from the China Paper Association, my country’s paper and cardboard production reached 121.05 million tons in 2021, an increase of 7.5% over the previous year. Driven by market demand, the scale of my country’s calcium sulfate whisker industry will further expand.

Modified anhydrous calcium sulfate whiskers are subdivided calcium sulfate whiskers prepared through surface modification. Compared with calcium sulfate dihydrate whiskers and calcium sulfate hemihydrate whiskers, modified anhydrous calcium sulfate whiskers have stronger adsorption and compatibility, and have a wider range of applications. In the local market, my country’s modified anhydrous calcium sulfate whiskers are mainly used to produce rubber products and plastic products, accounting for 70.0% of the demand. In recent years, my country’s modified anhydrous calcium sulfate whisker production has continued to increase, and it has exceeded 22,000 tons in 2021.

my country’s calcium sulfate whisker industry started late, but there are many manufacturers, including Ningyuan Longxiang New Materials, Sichuan Wanrun Industrial, Sichuan Kangsheng Whiskers, Jiangxi Fengzhu New Materials, Changzhou Guangwei New Materials, etc. Due to high technical barriers and national environmental protection policy restrictions, my country’s calcium sulfate whisker market is dominated by small and medium-sized enterprises, and its main products are concentrated in the mid- to low-end fields. High-performance calcium sulfate whisker products are highly dependent on imports.

​ ​  Industry analysts said that calcium sulfate whiskers, as a new fiber sub-nano material, have been widely used in many fields due to their excellent performance. Driven by downstream industries, my country’s calcium sulfate whisker market continues to expand. Affected by positive factors such as continuous innovation in production technology and national policy support, the application scenarios of calcium sulfate whiskers in my country will further expand, and the development trend of the industry will continue to improve.