Introduction
Ammonium sulphate, or di-ammonium sulphate, is a salty, odourless white crystalline solid. Ammonium sulphate is mainly used as a direct nitrogen fertiliser or in producing compound fertilisers. Ammonium sulphate, which has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use as a food additive, is also used as an acidity regulator in flours and breads. Apart from this, it also finds uses in increasing herbicide efficacy, in laboratory for protein purification and for manufacturing ammonium salts on a small scale.
Ammonium sulphate is mainly produced as a by-product of caprolactam. Other sources of production include its recovery from coke oven gas, gypsum and direct neutralisation methods.
Before 2010, the U.S. and Europe were major suppliers of caprolactam and thus, indirectly, of ammonium sulphate. However, after 2010, global ammonium sulphate production has shifted to the East with increasing production capacity of caprolactam in China.
Increasing use of ammonium sulphate as fertiliser (especially for alkaline soils), as major supply source for sulphur nutrient and for enhancing herbicide efficiency is fuelling its demand. With this increase in demand, the global and Far East & Baltic nations ammonium sulphate market is expected to register a high CAGR over the forecast period of 2015–2025.
Market Dynamics
Rising demand of ammonium sulphate as a nitrogenous fertiliser for alkaline soils is pushing its market to grow. Growing demand of sulphur nutrient for various crop production is also helping the ammonium sulphate market growth. Increase in global caprolactam supply has led to high increase in ammonium sulphate supply. Besides, government regulations to remove SO2 from stack gases are helping the supply to grow further globally.
Low nitrogen content in ammonium sulphate and decreased profitability due to oversupply are major factors restraining growth of the ammonium sulphate market. Besides, rising costs of aromatics are shrinking caprolactam profit margins majorly in Europe, where caprolactam producers have decreased ammonium sulphate production since they find it more cost effective not to produce ammonium sulphate due to high transportation and logistics costs.
Production Process Analysis
Based on production process, the global and Far East & Baltic nations ammonium sulphate market is segmented by caprolactam, coke oven gas, gypsum and neutralisation & others. In 2014, ammonium sulphate produced as a by-product of caprolactam held the largest market share. However, ammonium sulphate produced as by-product of caprolactam is characterised by superior quality as compared to that produced by coke oven gas and by gypsum.
Regional Analysis
Regionally, the Global, Far East and Baltic Nations Ammonium Sulphate market is segmented into China, Japan, Taiwan, Indonesia, South Korea, Russia and Ukraine & Baltic Nations. China is expected to remain the largest market over the forecast period, followed by Indonesia. Globally, ammonium sulphate market is segmented into Asia Pacific Excluding Japan (APEJ), North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Middle East & Africa and Japan.
Key Players
Key players reported in this study of global and Far East & Baltic nations ammonium sulphate market are Koninklijke DSM N.V. (Fibrant), JSC KuibyshevAzot, UBE Industries, Ltd., Toray Industries Inc., China Petrochemical Development Corporation, China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec Corp.), JSC “Grodno Azot”, Grupa Azoty, Domo Chemicals and Gujarat State Fertilizers & Chemicals Ltd.
Key Segment
By Production Process
- Caprolactam
- Coke Oven Gas
- Gypsum
- Neutralisation & Others
By Region
- Asia Pacific Excluding Japan (APEJ)
- North America
- Western Europe
- Eastern Europe
- Latin America
- Middle East & Africa
- Japan
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by - Sudip Saha, Managing Director and Co-Founder of Future Market Insights
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