Trimellitic anhydride has a wide range of application fields and the industry has huge development potential.

Trimellitic anhydride (TMA), also known as partial anhydride, with the molecular formula C9H4O5, refers to an important chemical product with a white flake appearance. Trimellitic anhydride has the characteristics of high purity, high melting point, high boiling point, high reactivity, and good high temperature resistance. It is the main raw material for making polyester resin, high-quality plasticizers, high-temperature resistant insulating paint, advanced coatings, engineering plastics and other products.

The main production methods of trimellitic anhydride mainly include trimellitic acid oxidation method, trimellitic acid gas phase oxidation method, trimellitic acid liquid phase air oxidation method and m-xylene formaldehyde liquid phase air oxidation method. Currently, global trimellitic anhydride production units are mainly distributed in Asia, North America and Europe. The main foreign trimellitic anhydride manufacturers include Eastman, ExxooMobil, Lanxess, TeknorApex-Tennessee, Aekyung, LG Chemical, DSM, Kao Plasticizer, BASF, etc. Among them, trimellitic anhydride liquid phase air oxidation method is the main production process in the foreign trimellitic anhydride market.

Domestic trimellitic anhydride companies mainly include Baichuan Chemical, Zhengdan Chemical, Bolin Chemical, TEDA New Materials, etc. In recent years, global trimellitic anhydride production capacity is gradually shifting to Asia. my country has become the world’s largest producer and seller of trimellitic anhydride by virtue of its strong labor force advantage and huge market capacity. The domestic annual domestic trimellitic anhydride production capacity is approximately 135,000 tons.

According to the “Global Trimellitic Anhydride Industry In-depth Market Research and Key Area Research Report 2022-2026” released by the Industrial Research Center, the trimellitic anhydride industry The upstream of the chain is raw material and production suppliers, mainly including trimellitic acid, acetic acid, acetic acid, cobalt acetate, tetrabromoethane and production equipment such as refrigerators, centrifuges, evaporators; the midstream is trimellitic anhydride manufacturers, mainstream production methods at home and abroad It is a liquid-phase air oxidation method of mesitylene; the downstream is the application market, mainly including plasticizers, high-temperature curing agents, insulation materials, powder coatings, etc.; the terminals are automotive, electronics, chemical industry, aerospace, household appliances and other fields.

From the perspective of market segments, plasticizers are currently the main market segment for trimellitic anhydride, and plasticizers include dibasic acid esters, phthalates, trimellitic acid triesters and other types. Among them, because phthalate plasticizers easily release harmful substances and pose carcinogenic risks, the country is currently taking corresponding measures to control their production. For example, in terms of policy, in November 2020, the country issued the “List of Priority Controlled Chemicals (No. 2 batches)” contains a variety of phenolic plasticizer products.

Industry analysts personnel said that the market share of phenylene plasticizers will continue to decline in the future, and trimellitic anhydride as raw material Triacid triester plasticizers will become the mainstream products in the plasticizer market due to their excellent performance and green and environmental protection advantages. In the future, trimellitic acid triester plasticizers will replace linbenzene plasticizers and occupy more domestic market shares. Their production capacity will gradually expand, and the industry has huge development potential.