The development trend of triethylaluminum (TEAL) industry is improving, and the production capacity of local enterprises continues to improve.
Triethylaluminum (TEAL) is a cocatalyst with a chemical formula of C6H15Al or Al(C2H5)3. Triethylaluminum appears as a colorless and transparent liquid with a strong musty smell and can be dissolved in benzene and hydrocarbon solvents. Triethylaluminum has high chemical reactivity and can be used in rocket fuel, polyolefin production, gas aluminum coating and other fields. According to the different aluminum hydride content, triethylaluminum can be divided into two types: special type (TEAL-S) and ordinary type (TEAL-N).
The triethylaluminum industry has high technical barriers, and my country’s demand has long been dependent on imports. The production of triethylaluminum usually uses aluminum ingots as the main raw material. Under high temperature conditions, it is melted and mixed with titanium powder, and titanium aluminum powder is obtained through processes such as dissolution and atomization, and then undergoes hydrogenation reaction, ethylation reaction, and distillation. , vaporization, purification, and finally the finished product. The production process of triethylaluminum is extremely complex, and its requirements for storage conditions are extremely high, resulting in increased production costs. Against this background, my country’s triethylaluminum market is in short supply.
Triethylaluminum has a wide range of applications. It can be used as a catalyst for α-olefins and POE. It can also be used as rocket fuel, initiator, gas spray additive, etc. Alpha-olefins are an important organic chemical raw material and intermediate with a wide range of uses. In 2022, my country’s apparent consumption of alpha-olefins will exceed 300,000 tons, setting a record high. With the rapid development of downstream industries, my country’s market demand for triethylaluminum is increasingly strong. According to the “2023-2028 China Triethylaluminum (TEAL) Industry Market In-depth Research and Development Prospects Forecast Report》shows that my country’s triethylaluminum market size will reach 370 million yuan in 2022, a year-on-year increase of 4.1%.
In terms of market competition, the world’s major producers of triethylaluminum include Akzo Nobel of the Netherlands, Chemtura of the United States, ALB of the United States, SAFC Hitech of the United Kingdom, South African Sasol Company (Sasol), etc. As the world’s largest supplier of triethylaluminum, AkzoNobel also occupies a dominant position in my country’s market.
At present, there are only three companies in my country with the production capacity of triethylaluminum, including Yingkou Fengguang New Materials Co., Ltd., Zhejiang Fried Chemical Co., Ltd., and Liaoning Xiangyang Kehua Group. According to an announcement from Fengguang Co., Ltd., after the company’s “Olefin Antioxidant Catalyst Project” invested in Yulin reaches production, the new production capacity of triethylaluminum will reach 8,000 tons. This means that my country’s triethylaluminum localization process has been further accelerated.
Industry analysts said that triethylaluminum has broad application prospects and the industry development trend will continue to improve. However, due to factors such as high technical barriers, my country’s triethylaluminum market is in short supply and the product is highly dependent on imports. At present, overseas companies still dominate my country’s triethylaluminum market. In the future, as local companies continue to improve their independent research and development capabilities, my country’s triethylaluminum production capacity is expected to be further expanded.