Catalysts market

Figure 4. United States catalyst market in 1990. (Reproduced from ref. 6. Copyright 1991 American Chemical Society.)...

Hoffman. H.J.L.. Refining Catalyst Market." Hydrocarbon Prrxessing. 37 iFcbruary [991). 

The variety of applications and the market growth potential have attracted numerous entries into the residuum hydroprocessing catalyst market, as indicated by the compilation of commercial vendors and catalysts in Table XXIII. Catalysts are available in an assortment of shapes, sizes, and formulations, but detailed information on catalytic metals, support composition, pore size, and pore size distribution is sketchy. 

Automotive emission control is a major catalyst market segment. These catalysts perform three functions (1) oxidize carbon monoxide to carbon dioxide (2) oxidize hydrocarbons to carbon dioxide and water and (3) reduce nitrogen oxides to nitrogen. The oxidation reactions use platinum and palladium as the active metal. Rhodium is the metal of choice for the reduction reaction. These three-way catalysts meet the current standards of 0.41 g hydrocarbon per mile, 3.4 g carbon monoxide per mile, and 0.4 g nitrogen oxides per mile. 

Catalysts are usually subdivided into homogeneous and heterogeneous classes. Homogeneous catalysts are soluble in the reaction media. Heterogeneous catalysts make up the bulk of the catalyst market they are the solid catalysts that can be a support material, such as alumina, silica, or silica alumina, but more often some metal salt is added to a formed catalyst support. 

Catalyst manufacturers are continually seeking new catalyst markets. Small catalyst samples for testing are generally available at no or moderate cost. Sometimes these require confidentiality agreements as discussed earlier or a nonanalysis agreement. This pledges the recipient of the catalyst not to try to determine the catalyst composition or method of preparation. If catalyst performance in a process is the objective, these restrictions are no problem. 

The heterogeneous catalysts have a profound impact on the chemical industry in general for example 60% of all chemical processes, 75% of oil refining processes, nearly 100% of polymers and about one hundred petrochemicals depend on the action of catalysts, as well as a significant part of environmental technologies (VOCs, automotive emissions control, stationary sources, etc.) and fine chemical production. Actually, the worldwide catalysts market is worth about 10 billion USD, (i.e. 10 x 109 USD) a year and, according to some... 

By 1992, the free-world catalyst market could reach four billion dollars and the United States projection is estimated to be two billion (18). It is difficult to estimate how much of an impact improved methods for engineering improved mechanical and physical properties will have on these figures, but we can expect that all catalysts will be checked to meet the specifications of the user and the quality control program of the producer. 

They also observed [48] that in Europe the catalyst market will be driven mainly from the various legislative standards that stipulate permissible quantities of contaminants/pollutants from automotive and other industrial plants (for instance. 

Figure 2.1 Estimated trend of catalyst market in markets in billion euro. CAGR Compound annual growth rate. Source adapted from Smith [49].

Catalyst production has a significant influence on the economy, since 80-90% of the chemicals used in a modern society are exposed to a catalyst. The value of the US catalyst market was 2.2 billion in 2000 [1]. A number of specialised catalyst companies in the world, many global, produce and supply a large number of products to the industry. It is said that products corresponding to 10% of the GNP of the industrialised countries are dependent on the availability of catalyst. Catalyst plants produce quantities of 0.1-100 t/day of each product dependant on the type. Thus, transfer of new products and implementation in catalyst plants are important technological disciplines for each catalyst company. 

Catalysts for environmental protection have become the largest segment of the catalyst market. The production of suitable supports for the active metals has been discussed earlier. In one system employed in automotive converters, exhaust gases first pass over a Rh-containing catalyst to bring about the reaction ... 

Initially it was intended to use the alumina as smelter feed. However, as the unique character of this alumina became clear, it was introduced to other markets, in particular the catalyst market. For the catalyst industry this was an unknown type of material and it was difficult to convince catalyst makers to use Ziegler-alumina in their formulation. Finally, the breakthrough came when catalyst manufacturers recognized the advantages of the high purity and the specific physical properties of alkoxide derived aluminas. 

Compared to the predominant applications of these carbon materials as adsorbents for drinking water, wastewater, and gas purification, as fillers in rubber production, or as refractory materials, however, their use in the catalyst market represents only a moderate share. The potential growth of the market for carbons in catalysis depends on (1) better understanding of the chemistry of carbon surfaces and fine tuning of the microstructure of these materials, which could then be exploited in the design of truly unique catalysts and (2) improvements in quality control and production methods, to supply constant-quality materials (synthetic carbons). There are additional opportunities to increase the market value of carbon materials in the near future, due to the rapidly advancing development of fuel cells, the use of novel carbon materials, the increasing need for catalytic... 

In 1999, the world market for catalysts (including precious metals) reached 9 G with 24 % for refining, 23 % polymers, 24 % chemicals and 29 % enviromnent. Table 9 gives the refining catalyst market in tons and by application for 1999 and 2005 (2). 

The second period is closely related to the development of the so-called three-way catalysts (TWC). As is known, TWCs constitute the current technology of election for the abatement of exhaust emissions (Unbumed hydrocarbons, CO, and NOx) from gasoline-fuelled vehicles [10,18,19,246,247]. More than 95% of the gasoline vehicles nowadays produced in the world are equipped with a TWC converter [247]. The economic importance is also extraordinary, the TWC sales representing about one fourth of global catalyst market [246]. 

Thus the catalyst market can be devided into four main areas ... 

---