Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic market to reach USD 20.92 billion by 2020

• PAN-based CFRP the leading raw material with over 90%
• Thermoset the leading product segment: 77.1%
• Thermoplastic CFRP is expected to witness the highest growth rates

The global carbon fiber reinforced plastic market is expected to reach USD 20.92 billion by 2020, according to a new study by Grand View Research, Inc. Growing demand for high performance, light weight materials in automotive and aerospace industries is expected to remain a key driving factor for the global carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) market.

PAN-based CFRP the leading raw material with over 90%

Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) and petroleum pitch are the key raw materials used for manufacturing CFRP. PAN-based CFRP emerged as the leading raw material and accounted for over 90% of total market volume in 2013. PAN is also expected to witness the highest growth of 14.4% from 2014 to 2020. The growth may be attributed to superior properties offered by PAN-based CFRP.

Further key findings from the study

• Thermoset was the leading product segment and accounted for 77.1% of total market volume in 2013.
• Thermoplastic CFRP is expected to witness the highest growth of 15.4% over the forecast period on account of high viscosity and short-process time offered by it.
• Aerospace emerged as the leading application segment and accounted for 23.5% of total market volume in 2013. The rise in demand can be attributed to its increasing adoption across the commercial aviation sector in Europe. Automotive is expected to be the fastest growing application segment at a CAGR of 19.5% from 2014 to 2020. Focus towards improving fuel efficiency by reducing overall weight of automobiles particularly in the U.S. and Europe is expected to drive CFRP demand in automotive industry.
• North America was the leading regional market and accounted for 36.8% of total market volume in 2013. Growing CFRP demand in automotive and aviation & defense sectors on account of stringent environmental regulations and need for fuel efficient vehicles is expected to drive the regional market over the forecast period. Europe is expected to witness significant growth of 16.4% from 2014 to 2020. Japan, China and Taiwan are the leading CFRP consumers in Asia Pacific and together accounts for over 90% of the regional market.
• Global carbon fiber reinforced plastic market is highly concentrated with top four companies accounting for over 60% of total market. Key market participants include Toho, Toray, Group, Mitsubishi Rayon Co. Ltd., Zoltek Cytec Industries SGL-Group. Other companies operating in the global market include Hexcel Corporation, Cytec Industries, Formosa Plastics Corporation, Hyosung, AKSACA etc.