Arkema said the capacity increase for polyvinylidenfluorid (PVDF) in Jiangsu Province will also support the significant growth in the water filtration, specialty coatings and semiconductor sectors. The company’s Kynar-branded material is used in separator films and for coating of lithium-ion batteries.

Demand for lithium-ion batteries is rising strongly because of the shift to producing electric vehicles. Asia’s water filtration market is also growing rapidly because of the region’s rising population and growing industrialization, leading to increasing demand for sanitation and fresh water.

Neither the size of the increase nor the Chinese plant’s current capacity has been revealed, nor the investment cost. When announcing plans for the original production unit that went on stream in 2011, Arkema said it would be able to produce 18,000 t/y. The facility has been expanded several times, most recently in December 2020.

The French specialty chemicals producer has also announced a 50% PVDF capacity expansion at its Pierre-Bénite site in France. The additional output is expected to be in the market in the first quarter of 2023.

Author: Dede Williams, Freelance Journalist