Pentafluoroethane is the third generation refrigerant. The overall development trend of the industry in 2021 is good.

Pentafluoroethane is an organic compound with the chemical formula C2HF5. It appears as a colorless gas at room temperature and can be liquefied under pressure. After liquefaction, it appears as a colorless and transparent liquid with an aromatic smell. Pentafluoroethane is stable at room temperature and pressure, non-flammable, slightly soluble in water and slightly soluble in hydrocarbons, and can decompose under high temperature conditions. The decomposition products are toxic hydrogen fluoride and carbon tetrafluoride.

Pentafluoroethane has an ODP (ozone depletion potential) of zero and a low GWP (global warming potential). It is an ideal refrigerant and belongs to the third generation of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) refrigerants, also known as For HFC-125, R125. Pentafluoroethane can be used in combination with other refrigerants. For example, it can be mixed with difluoromethane (R32) at a ratio of 1:1 to make a new refrigerant R410A, which can be used to replace the second-generation refrigerant R22 (difluoromethane). ). In addition to refrigerants, pentafluoroethane can also be used as propellant, fire extinguishing agent, foaming agent, etc. High-purity pentafluoroethane can also be used in the electronic field as a semiconductor etchant.

In overseas markets, the main pentafluoroethane manufacturers include Honeywell of the United States, Chemours of the United States, Arkema of France, Linde Group of Germany, and Daikin of Japan. )wait. In the Chinese market, the main pentafluoroethane manufacturers include Juhua Chemical, Luxi Chemical, Sanmei Chemical, Yonghe Chemical, Shandong Dongyue, Sinochem Blue Sky, Meilan Chemical, Sanaifu, etc. Among them, Juhua Co., Ltd. has a production capacity of pentafluoroethane of 40,000 tons/year, Sanmei Co., Ltd. has a production capacity of 52,000 tons/year, and Shandong Dongyue has a production capacity of 60,000 tons/year.

Entering 2021, the overall development of my country’s pentafluoroethane industry is improving. In August, the price of pentafluoroethane rose rapidly. One of the reasons is that the supply of the raw material tetrachlorethylene is tight, the price is rising, and the cost supports the increase in the price of pentafluoroethane; the second reason is that the domestic pentafluoroethane inventory is at a low level, coupled with the low operating rate of industries in shortage of raw materials, the pentafluoroethane market Insufficient supply; the third reason is that the United States has imposed anti-dumping sanctions on R125 imported from China. American companies have stocked up in large quantities in advance, and the scale of exports has rapidly expanded, driving up domestic pentafluoroethane prices.

According to the “2021-2025 Pentafluoroethane (R125) Industry In-depth Market Research and Investment Strategy Suggestions Report” released by the Industrial Research Center It shows that in mid-November 2021, the domestic market demand for pentafluoroethane was stable, and the export market demand slowed down after a substantial growth. Superimposed on the overall operating rate of the pentafluoroethane industry was stable, the market supply was sufficient, and the price of pentafluoroethane was stable. Fall back.

Industry analysts said that pentafluoroethane is a third-generation refrigerant with an ODP of zero, but its GWP is still relatively high. In the future, it will be replaced by fourth-generation hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs) refrigerants. However, the current fourth-generation refrigerants still have shortcomings in terms of technology, performance, production capacity, cost, etc. For a long period of time, the third-generation refrigerants will still dominate the market. Refrigerant R410A, which is made by mixing pentafluoroethane and difluoromethane, is a new type of environmentally friendly refrigerant. It has a large market space in the air-conditioning field and has good future development prospects for the industry.