Specialty LDPE Copolymers July 2016 Report Contents

Specialty LDPE Copolymers

Table of Contents
A Report by NexantThinking™
Process Evaluation/Research Planning (PERP) Program
PERP Report 2016S4 – Published July 2016
www.nexantthinking.com

Section Page

1 Executive Summary ............................................................................................................... 1

1.1 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................... 1
1.1.1 Ethylene Vinyl Acetate (EVA) ....................................................................... 2
1.1.2 Acrylate Copolymers .................................................................................... 3
1.1.3 Acid Copolymers .......................................................................................... 3
1.1.4 Ionomers ...................................................................................................... 3
1.1.5 Maleic Anhydride (MAH) Grafted Polyolefins ............................................... 5
1.2 CONVENTIONAL TECHNOLOGY ............................................................................ 6
1.2.1 Chemistry ..................................................................................................... 6
1.2.2 LDPE Technology ........................................................................................ 8
1.2.3 LDPE Copolymer Production ....................................................................... 9
1.3 ECONOMICS ............................................................................................................ 11
1.4 MARKET ANALYSIS ................................................................................................. 14
1.4.1 End-Use Analysis ......................................................................................... 14
1.4.2 Regional Analysis ......................................................................................... 14
2 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 16
2.1 ETHYLENE VINYL ACETATE (EVA) ........................................................................ 17
2.2 ACRYLATE COPOLYMERS ..................................................................................... 21
2.2.1 Ethylene Methylacrylate (EMA) .................................................................... 21
2.2.2 Ethylene Ethyl Acrylate (EEA) ...................................................................... 21
2.2.3 Ethylene n-butyl Acrylate (EBA) ................................................................... 22
2.3 ACID COPOLYMERS ............................................................................................... 23
2.3.1 Ethylene Acrylic Acid (EAA) ......................................................................... 23
2.3.2 Ethylene Methacrylic Acid (EMAA) .............................................................. 24
2.4 IONOMERS ............................................................................................................... 24
2.5 MALEIC ANHYDRIDE (MAH) GRAFTED POLYOLEFINS ....................................... 28
3 Conventional Technology ....................................................................................................... 30
3.1 CHEMISTRY ............................................................................................................. 30
3.2 LDPE TECHNOLOGY ............................................................................................... 33
3.2.1 Overview ...................................................................................................... 33

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3.2.2 LDPE Tubular Process ................................................................................. 34

3.2.3 LDPE Autoclave Process ............................................................................. 37
3.2.4 LDPE Maleic Anhydride Grafted .................................................................. 39
3.3 LDPE COPOLYMER PRODUCTION ........................................................................ 41
3.3.1 Overview ...................................................................................................... 41
3.3.2 Ethylene Ester Copolymers .......................................................................... 42
3.3.3 Ethylene Acid Copolymers ........................................................................... 43
3.3.4 Ionomers ...................................................................................................... 43
3.4 TECHNOLOGY TRENDS ......................................................................................... 47
4 Economics .............................................................................................................................. 48
4.1 BASIS ........................................................................................................................ 48
4.2 INVESTMENT ........................................................................................................... 49
4.3 ECONOMICS ............................................................................................................ 50
4.4 RAW MATERIAL SENSITIVITY ................................................................................ 68
5 Market Analysis ...................................................................................................................... 69
5.1 END-USE ANALYSIS................................................................................................ 69
5.1.1 Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Copolymers (EVA) .................................................. 69
5.1.2 Acrylate Copolymers .................................................................................... 77
5.1.3 Acid Copolymers .......................................................................................... 79
5.1.4 Ionomers ...................................................................................................... 80
5.1.5 Other Specialty LDPE Copolymers .............................................................. 80
5.2 REGIONAL ANALYSIS ............................................................................................. 83
5.2.1 Global ........................................................................................................... 83
5.2.2 North America .............................................................................................. 86
5.2.3 Western Europe ........................................................................................... 90
5.2.4 China ............................................................................................................ 94

Appendix Page

A Definitions of Capital Cost Terms Used in Process Economics ............................................... A-1

B Definitions of Operating Cost Terms Used in Process Economics .......................................... B-1
C PERP Program Title Index (2007 - 2016) .............................................................................. C-1

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Figure Page

1.1 Physical Property Comparison .................................................................................................... 1

1.2 Variation of EVA Resin Property with Melt Index and VA Content ............................................ 2
1.3 Schematic Structure of Ionomers ................................................................................................ 4
1.4 Grafted Copolymer Chain ............................................................................................................ 8
1.5 Comparison of Reactivity of Comonomers ................................................................................. 10
1.6 Homopolymer LDPE and EVA Copolymer Production Costs .................................................... 12
1.7 Homopolymer LDPE and other Specialty Copolymer Production Costs ................................... 13
1.8 Global Ethylene Copolymer Demand by Region, 2015 .............................................................. 14
1.9 Global Ethylene Copolymer Demand by Type, 2015 ................................................................. 15
1.10 Global Specialty LDPE Production Capable Capacity, 2015 ..................................................... 15
2.1 Physical Property Comparison .................................................................................................... 16
2.2 Crystallinity of EVA as a Function of VA Content ....................................................................... 17
2.3 Stiffness of EVA at 20 °C as a Function of VA Content ............................................................. 18
2.4 Variation of EVA Resin Property with Melt Index and VA Content ............................................ 19
2.5 EVA Application Range by Melt Index and VA Content ............................................................. 19
2.6 Schematic Structure of Ionomer .................................................................................................. 25
2.7 Melt Viscosity of Ionomer Compared to LDPE ........................................................................... 28
3.1 Grafted Copolymer Chain ............................................................................................................ 33
3.2 Low Density Polyethylene Tubular Process................................................................................ 36
3.3 Low Density Polyethylene Autoclave Process ............................................................................ 38
3.4 Grafting Maleic Anhydride to LDPE Process ............................................................................. 40
3.5 Comparison of Reactivity of Comonomers ................................................................................. 42
3.6 Twin-Screw Geometry for a Co-Rotating System ....................................................................... 45
3.7 Plant for Producing Ionomer Resins............................................................................................ 46
4.1 Homopolymer LDPE and EVA Copolymer Production Costs .................................................... 51
4.2 Homopolymer LDPE and other Specialty Copolymer Production Costs ................................... 52
4.3 EVA Copolymer Resin Cash Cost Sensitivity to Ethylene Cost ................................................. 68
5.1 Use of EVAs in Flexible Packaging ............................................................................................. 70
5.2 Notched IZOD Impact Test Results for Selected Thermoplastic Resins ................................... 78
5.3 Global Ethylene Copolymer Demand by Region, 2015 .............................................................. 83
5.4 Global Ethylene Copolymer Demand by Type, 2015 ................................................................. 84
5.5 Global EVA Demand by End-use Application, 2015 .................................................................. 85
5.6 Global Specialty LDPE Production Capable Capacity, 2015 ..................................................... 86
5.7 North American Ethylene Copolymer Demand, 2015 ................................................................ 87
5.8 North America EVA Demand by Application, 2015 .................................................................... 88
5.9 Western Europe Ethylene Copolymer Demand, 2015 ............................................................... 91
5.10 Western Europe EVA Demand by Application, 2015 ................................................................. 92
5.11 China Ethylene Copolymer Demand, 2015 ................................................................................ 94
5.12 China EVA Demand by Application, 2015 .................................................................................. 95

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Table Page

1.1 Effect of Cation on Ionomer Properties .................................................................................. 5

1.2 LDPE Autoclave versus Tubular Reactors ............................................................................. 9
1.3 Reactivity Ratios in High Pressure Ethylene/Copolymerization ............................................. 10
1.4 Homopolymer LDPE and EVA Copolymer Production Costs ................................................ 12
1.5 Homopolymer LDPE and Other Specialty Copolymer Production Costs ............................... 13
2.1 Typical EVA Properties .......................................................................................................... 20
2.2 EVA Competitive Material Properties and Applications ......................................................... 20
2.3 EMA Copolymer Film Properties ............................................................................................ 21
2.4 Properties of Crosslinked EEA ............................................................................................... 22
2.5 EEA Copolymer Properties .................................................................................................... 22
2.6 EBA Copolymer Properties .................................................................................................... 23
2.7 EAA Copolymer Film Properties............................................................................................. 23
2.8 EMAA Copolymer Properties ................................................................................................. 24
2.9 Effect of Cation on Ionomer Properties .................................................................................. 26
2.10 Selected Properties of Ionomers ............................................................................................ 26
2.11 Ionomer Property Grid ............................................................................................................ 27
2.12 Comparison of Ionomer Properties to EVA and EEA ............................................................. 28
3.1 LDPE Autoclave versus Tubular Reactors ............................................................................. 34
3.2 Reactivity Ratios in High Pressure Ethylene/Copolymerization ............................................. 41
3.3 Reactivity Ratios for Acid Comonomers................................................................................. 43
4.1 USGC Specialty LDPE Copolymer Capital Cost Estimates ................................................... 49
4.2 Homopolymer LDPE and EVA Copolymer Production Costs ................................................ 51
4.3 Homopolymer LDPE and Other Specialty Copolymer Production Costs ............................... 52
4.4 Cost of Production Estimate for: Homopolymer LDPE
Process: Tubular .................................................................................................................... 54
4.5 Cost of Production Estimate for: LDPE – 10% VA
Process: Tubular .................................................................................................................... 55
4.6 Cost of Production Estimate for: LDPE – 18% VA
Process: Tubular .................................................................................................................... 56
4.7 Cost of Production Estimate for: Homopolymer LDPE Process: Autoclave .......................... 57
4.8 Cost of Production Estimate for: LDPE – 10% VA
Process: Autoclave ................................................................................................................. 58
4.9 Cost of Production Estimate for: LDPE – 18% VA
Process: Autoclave ................................................................................................................. 59
4.10 Cost of Production Estimate for: LDPE – 28% VA
Process: Autoclave ................................................................................................................. 60
4.11 Cost of Production Estimate for: LDPE – 40% VA
Process: Autoclave ................................................................................................................. 61
4.12 Cost of Production Estimate for: LDPE – 18% EA
Process: Tubular .................................................................................................................... 62
4.13 Cost of Production Estimate for: LDPE – 10% AA
Process: Autoclave ................................................................................................................. 63

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4.14 Cost of Production Estimate for: LDPE – 7% MA

Process: Autoclave ................................................................................................................. 64
4.15 Cost of Production Estimate for: LDPE – 7% MAA
Process: Autoclave ................................................................................................................. 65
4.16 Cost of Production Estimate for: Ionomer – Direct Coupled
Process: Autoclave ................................................................................................................. 66
4.17 Cost of Production Estimate for: MAH Grafted LDPE
Process: 70mm Twin Screw Extruder .................................................................................... 67
5.1 EVA End-use Applications by Percent VA Content ............................................................... 69
5.2 Use of Specialty LDPE Copolymers as Polymer Modifiers .................................................... 74
5.3 Global Ethylene Copolymer Demand by Region.................................................................... 83
5.4 Global Ethylene Copolymer Demand by Type ....................................................................... 84
5.5 Global EVA Demand by End-use Application ........................................................................ 85
5.6 North American Ethylene Copolymer Demand ...................................................................... 87
5.7 North America EVA Demand by Applications ........................................................................ 88
5.8 North America Specialty LDPE Production Capable Capacity, 2015 .................................... 90
5.9 Western Europe Ethylene Copolymer Demand ..................................................................... 91
5.10 Western Europe EVA Demand by Application ....................................................................... 92
5.11 Western Europe Specialty LDPE Production Capable Capacity, 2015 ................................. 93
5.12 China Ethylene Copolymer Demand ...................................................................................... 94
5.13 China EVA Demand by Application ........................................................................................ 95
5.14 China Specialty LDPE Production Capable Capacity, 2015 .................................................. 97

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Nexant Thinking™
Process Evaluation/Research Planning

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Phone: + +44 207 950 1587, email: [email protected]

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