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The United States, Western Europe, China and Other Asia are currently the major producing and consuming regions for polyurethane (PU) elastomers.
Carbon fibers are noted for their high strength and stiffness, light weight, good fatigue resistance, good electrical conductivity, chemical inertness and low coefficient of thermal expansion. Carbon fibers are used primarily as reinforcing agents in high performance composites with synthetic resin matrices such as epoxies, polyimides, vinyl esters, phenolics and certain thermoplastics. Small quantities of carbon fiber are consumed in composites with carbon matrices; in addition, developmental work is being performed with metal, ceramic and glass matrices. The carbon fiber serves to provide the strength and stiffness of the composite, while the matrix material maintains fiber alignment and transfers structural load among the fibers. Compared with conventional construction materials such as aluminum or steel, carbon fiber composites have some highly desirable properties. Structural members made from these composites can be designed to have twice the strength and more than twice the fatigue resistance of steel; also, they can be twice as stiff as aluminum at half the weight.
Global carbon fiber capacity utilization decreased in 2009 as a result of increased capacity and weak demand caused by the global recession. Between 2006 and 2009, world capacity for carbon fibers grew at an average annual rate of approximately 19%, greatly outpacing world consumption, which grew at an average annual rate of approximately 5% during the same period. Although world demand increased during 2006–2007, it weakened considerably during 2008–2009 in most regions, wiping out substantial volume gains since 2006.
The following pie chart shows world consumption of carbon fibers:
Major advances in technology and processing have dramatically expanded the demand for high-performance carbon fibers. The introduction of higher-volume and lower-cost fibers and gains in productivity have reduced the manufacturing costs of carbon fibers. Since cost is a major factor affecting demand, continued improvements in performance coupled with increased availability are expected to boost consumption in all regions and applications. Industrial applications will remain the largest world market, helped by significant growth in markets such as wind turbine blades and pressure vessels. World demand in aircraft/aerospace applications is forecast to surpass sporting goods/recreation to become the second-largest market for carbon fibers by 2014.
Europe, North America and Asia are the largest markets for carbon fibers, accounting for nearly 100% of world consumption in 2009. Asia is expected to surpass North America by 2014 as the second-largest market. China has become the single largest consumer of carbon fibers in sporting goods/recreation; it is expected to further strengthen this position, increasing its global share from approximately 55% in 2009 to 65% by 2014. Other markets such as industrial and aircraft/aerospace are also expected to grow significantly in China.
World consumption is forecast to grow at an average annual rate of 11.6% during 2009–2014. Demand growth in aircraft/aerospace markets is expected to be significant, especially during 2010–2013, as deliveries of large commercial aircraft such as the Boeing 787 and Airbus 380 ramp up. Demand for carbon fibers is expected to start recovering in 2010; however, the speed and timing of a recovery are still uncertain.
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