The early 1980s marked a turning point for the chemical industry with the emergence of single-site, homogeneous, or metallocene catalysts for polymer production. This single-site feature allowed for better control over polymer design, driving growth in specialty and engineered polymer applications. Ethylene- or propylene-based polyolefin elastomers (POE) and plastomers (POP) combine the properties of traditional polymers such as polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) with the elastomeric qualities of ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM).
These elastomeric properties give POEs and POPs high impact strength and puncture resistance. POEs and POPs also include comonomers such as 1-butene (C4), 1-hexene (C6), or 1-octene (C8), which are used to target specific properties for specialty applications. For instance, C4 is mainly used in commodity Ziegler-Natta (Z/N) grades. While in more premium grades, C6 provides puncture resistance and sealing properties, and C8 offers better processibility and tear resistance. Exhibit 1 shows key properties.
Exhibit 1. Key properties of POE and POP.
As ADI’s multi-client study on the global POE and POP market notes, global demand for POE and POP has grown significantly, primarily in applications such as packaging, polymer modification, and foam, and increasingly in plastics recycling, hot-melt adhesives (HMAs), and solar encapsulants. POE demand in HMAs is expected to continue to grow, mainly due to their thermal stability. This stability not only extends their useful life but also makes them suitable for health and hygiene products, such as baby diapers, due to their char-free and odor-free properties.
Furthermore, with energy transition driving the need for fuel efficiency improvements, electric vehicles (EVs), and solar power, demand for POE and POP has propelled up in polymer modification in automotive and solar encapsulant applications. ADI has had several conversations with film producers in North America, Europe, India, and China as part of our research. These conversations indicate that while ethyl vinyl acetate (EVA)-based films continue to dominate solar encapsulant production, value chain localization in China may grow POE’s share in the long-term. More recently, POEs have also found application in electric batteries and insulating devices and POPs have found application in adhesive-free packaging.
The rest of this article is available to ADI Plus Essential subscribers. Enhanced subscribers also get a downloadable PDF of ADI’s global POE and POP demand by application in 2024 and demand forecast through 2045. For Enterprise subscribers, an additional data file is also available.
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