Introduction
Flame retardants are polymer additives that are used to increase fire resistance in polymers and slow down the fire spread. Flame retardants are broadly classified into halogenated and non-halogenated flame retardants.
As the name suggests, non-halogenated flame retardants do not contain any halogen. These flame retardants are recyclable and emit less smoke on disposal. Rising concerns regarding environmental impact of halogenated flame retardants is fueling growth of the non-halogenated flame retardants (NHFR) market.
Non-halogenated flame retardants find application in various industries such as plastics, rubber, and textile; among these, plastics is the major end use industry segment. Non-halogenated flame retardants are added to polymers in either reactive or additive form, and are then used in plastics, rubber, and textiles materials.
Market Dynamics
Over the last few years, application of plastics in electrical equipment and consumer electronics industries is increasing at a rapid pace. However, these equipment are flammable. Non-halogenated flame retardants are the ideal choice for putting off such fires.
Plastics play a significant role in the building and construction industry. Roofing, insulation, wall coverings, windows, piping, decks, fences, railing, and plastic house wrap are some of the applications of plastics in a typical house. Plastics are not only aesthetically pleasing, lightweight, and low cost but also very efficient. However, the only caveat here is that in case of fire, it works as an active fuel. So, in order to ensure safety of humans as well as of environment, adoption of non-halogenated flame retardant is expected to grow in the building & construction sector in the near future.
Although non-halogenated flame retardants are effective, they are plagued by certain performance and processing issues in plastics application, which affects physical and chemical characteristics of the end products. This hampers uptake of non-halogenated flame retardant as compared to their halogenated counterpart. However, major players are constantly focused towards investing in R&D activities to find a solution or workaround for this problem.
Product Analysis
On the basis of product type, the non-halogenated flame retardant market is segmented into four segments, namely, metal oxide based, phosphorous based, nitrogen based and others. The others segment mainly includes silicon-, boron-, sulfur- and carbon-based flame retardants. In terms of market value, the phosphorous based segment is projected to exhibit the highest CAGR over the forecast period (2015–2025) and is also expected to create highest incremental $ opportunity between 2015 and 2025.
End-use Industry Analysis
On the basis of end-use industry, the non-halogenated flame retardant market is segmented into four segments namely construction, electrical & electronics, automotive and others. By 2015 end, construction industry is expected to be the largest end-use segment. However, by the end of the forecast period, the segment is expected to lose its dominance to the electrical & electronics industry segment, in terms of market value.
Application Analysis
On the basis of application, the non-halogenated flame retardant market is segmented into nine segments namely, polyolefin, epoxy, unsaturated polyester, rubber, polyvinyl chloride, polyurethane, styrenics, engineering thermoplastics (ETP) and others segment. Because of their growing use in across most industries, polyolefin segment is projected to remain the largest application segment by 2025, expanding at a significant growth rate over the forecast period.
Regional Analysis
Regionally, the non-halogenated flame retardant market is segmented into seven segments namely, North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Asia Pacific Excluding Japan (APEJ), Middle East & Africa and Japan. Although North America is expected to remain the largest market between 2015 and 2025, APEJ is expected to emerge as the fastest growing market for NHFR over the forecast period.
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Key Players
Some of the key players in the global non halogenated flame retardant market that have been covered in the report are Clariant International Limited, Albemarle Corporation, Israel Chemical Limited, Italmatch Chemicals S.p.A, Chemtura Corporation, Nabaltec AG, FRX Polymer Inc, Huber Engineered Material, Amfine Chemical Corporation and THOR Group Ltd. Albemarle Corporation is expected to hold the largest market share in the global non-halogenated flame retardant market by the end of financial year 2014–2015.
Key Segment
By Product Type
- Metal Oxide (PO)
- Phosphorous
- Nitrogen
- Others
By Application
- Polyolefin (PO)
- Epoxy
- Unsaturated Polyester (UPE)
- Rubber
- Poly Vinyl Chloride (PVC)
- Poly urethane (PU)
- Styrenics
- Engineering Thermo Plastics (ETP)
- Others
By End-Use
- Electrical & Electronics Industry
- Construction Industry
- Automotive & Transportation
- Others
By Country
- Brazil
- Mexico
- Argentina
- Rest of Latin America
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by - Sudip Saha, Managing Director and Co-Founder of Future Market Insights
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