Pigments Market Update
Challenges and Trends
According to Hoover, the major trends and challenges influencing the global pigment market today include energy and TiO2
pricing, which “has clouded the crystal ball,” he said.
“Six months ago energy experts were predicting oil prices
rebounding and leveling at $75/barrel. Obviously, they were
wrong. This volatility is limiting our ability and that of our customers to make long-term decisions. Supply shortages and gluts
will keep everyone’s head spinning to keep up with price changes.”
Forsythe, of BASF, said that trends in the industry include
“increasing competition with some color index types, the need
for specialty products in specific applications and the further
globalization of both the pigment supplier and customer base.
“Additionally,” he added, “there is an increase in demand for
environmental and regulatory information and a more environ-
mentally aware market overall. Meanwhile, customers continue
to desire pigments to help them reach new color spaces with
unique appearance to differentiate their products.”
Crosby, also of BASF, said that the challenge in the market is
keeping ahead of these trends.
“For example, the automotive market space continues to push
the boundaries on performance and cost efficiency with primer-
less and compact, low film build coatings. This challenges pig-
ment manufacturers to produce high hide, durable pigments that
do not adversely impact gloss. BASF continues to innovate our
sustainable product portfolio to deliver solutions to our custom-
ers and meet the needs of a dynamic market space,” he said.
The increased need for sustainable products – whether because of customer demand or government requirements – is one
that will continue well into the future. Forsythe said that BASF
responds to these demands by adding functionality to its pigments portfolio.
“BASF offers a range of near infrared transparent and
opaque pigments to aid in heat management and energy con-
servation,” he said. “Our product offering also includes next
generation pigments that are helping to replace pigments con-
taining heavy metals or utilizing chrome treatments for im-
proved weathering. “
Hoover said that his company started processing iron ox-
ide pigments utilizing a new method in 2013. “We have named
the products made from this process EnvironOxides,” he
said. “These pigments are the first sustainably produced Iron
Oxide Pigments and are the by-product of an environmental
remediation process which helps clean the water-supply of west-
ern Pennsylvania.”
In addition to ‘greener’ products, pigments customers
are increasingly looking for specific performance attributes.
Regarding these attributes, Hoover believes that “color is the
first quality parameter.”
He added, “Our customer’s quality is very often first evalu-
ated by the color of their product. Therefore, product supply
and consistency are the two most important attributes are cus-
tomers are looking for.”
Chromaflo’s McCormick said that his company’s customers are
looking for products with equal or better performance at a lower cost.
newly developed by LANXESS, namely the patented “Ningbo
Process,” which sets new standards in terms of resource conservation and product quality. We chose the name because, first
of all, we wanted to underline its significance for the iron oxide
pigment industry as a process that will set new standards worldwide in sustainability and product quality in the production of
iron oxide red pigments. Secondly, the name symbolizes our
commitment to China and is an expression of our thanks to the
Ningbo Chemical Park for its outstanding support during the
entire planning and construction phase.
CW: Why was a new process necessary? What is the difference between it and the existing LAUX, Penniman and Copperas processes?
PB: LANXESS operates a Laux process in Germany in the
world’s largest iron oxide production facility. This method is
exemplary in conserving resources and in its consistent use of
the heat generated by chemical reaction and turns out high-quality red pigments. But, its color spectrum falls short when
it comes to red pigments with a more pronounced yellowish
undertone. The Penniman Red process helps to fill that gap,
as it is able to render the more yellow-cast color space – however, in terms of the environmental aspects, this process is not
so good. We took on the challenge of developing our own
process that makes no compromises on quality, sustainable
production methods, or conservative resource management.
CW: How does your process differ technically from the Penniman process? Is it really justified to refer to it as a new process?
PB: The traditional Penniman Red process is probably one
of the most environmentally ”un-friendly” processes for manufacturing iron oxide red pigments. The Ningbo process is one
of the most sustainable – not only because it is the first to integrate comprehensive waste gas treatment to remove nitrogen
oxide, including harmful nitrous oxide emissions, but above all,
because the sophisticated control system for the entire process
significantly reduces the generation of harmful waste gases
from the outset. The remaining waste gases are converted
back into nitric acid in a complex system and then returned
to the process as a raw material. Furthermore, the combinations of process optimizations, modern plant technology and
heat recovery significantly reduce the energy requirement. And
thanks to a very efficient water treatment system incorporating
biological denitrification, ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis, the
process water can be returned almost entirely to the cycle.
Apart from the environmental protection measures, the
Ningbo process also differs from the traditional Penniman Red
process because it incorporates precision-controlled management of the formation reaction, altered synthesis of the starting
materials for pigment formation, and a special sequence for the
individual production steps. Furthermore, the process integrates
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