Distribution and Application Development of China's Ceramic Industry

Starting from the 1980s, the composition design, grain boundary engineering, net size forming, and sintering technology research and development of ceramic materials, guided by the development of key high-temperature ceramic components in efficient engines and gas turbines, have cultivated a talent team and laid a foundation for the research and development of structural ceramics. In the following thirty years, China made tremendous progress in the research and industrialization of high-tech ceramic preparation technology. At present, various new structural ceramic materials and complex shaped ceramic components can be prepared, and some of the structural ceramic products have been exported overseas. In addition, the distribution and regional characteristics of the domestic structural ceramic industry have been formed. With the advancement of structural ceramic material preparation technology and strong market demand in China, the structural ceramic industry has shown a good development trend. The application of new generation structural ceramic products covers various fields and plays an important role in the national economy and industrial modernization process.

Regional distribution of structural ceramic industry

The domestic structural ceramic industry is mainly concentrated in Guangdong, Jiangsu, Shandong, as well as Hunan, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Henan, Liaoning and other regions. Among them, Guangdong, Jiangsu, Shandong, Jiangxi, and Hunan provinces have a high concentration of structural ceramics and are competitive in technology and products. A group of powerful enterprises have emerged; At the same time, many technology-based medium-sized enterprises are also rapidly developing. In addition, there are hundreds of distinctive small structural ceramic enterprises.

Main distribution areas of structural ceramic industry

Ceramic enterprises in Shenzhen, Foshan, Chaozhou, Dongguan, Shantou and other regions of Guangdong Province have certain advantages in the manufacturing of ceramic components, such as optical communication ceramic inserts, mobile phone ceramic backboards, ceramic watch cases for electronic wearable products, electronic packaging ceramic substrates, high-strength ceramic plugs, ceramic ball valves, ceramic precision components, high-temperature ceramic sticks, etc., which occupy a large market of high value-added industrial ceramic products. At present, there are about 200 enterprises, among which some large or listed companies with certain competitiveness have developed internationally, such as Chaozhou Third Ring, Dongfang Zirconia Industry, Foshan Ceramic Research Institute Co., Ltd., Dongguan Xinbai Structural Ceramics Co., Ltd. under Shunluo Electronics, etc. There is also a group of small and medium-sized enterprises such as Shenzhen Shangde that have characteristics in ceramic precision forming and precision processing.

Guangdong Chaozhou Third Ring Group

Dongguan Xinbai Structural Ceramics Co., Ltd

Yixing, Suzhou, Changzhou, Changshu and other regions in Jiangsu have advantages in the fields of precision textile ceramic components, precision ceramic bearing balls, structural ceramic components for chemical industry, honeycomb ceramics for automotive exhaust purification, wear-resistant ceramics, environmentally friendly ceramics for water and flue gas treatment. Representative enterprises include Yixing Non metallic Chemical Machinery Factory Co., Ltd., Yixing Jiurong Special Ceramics Co., Ltd., Jiangsu Jinsheng Ceramic Technology Co., Ltd., Jiangsu Ceramic Research Institute Co., Ltd., and Yixing Prince Ceramics Co., Ltd. The fine ceramic industry in Yixing region has formed a large production scale, developing from a single alumina material to various materials such as alumina, zirconia, magnesium oxide, titanium oxide, talc porcelain, cordierite, silicon carbide, silicon nitride, and boron nitride; The application scope of the product has also greatly expanded, covering many industrial fields. Not only is it exported in large quantities, but it also has a high market share in the domestic market. The product categories also cover various fields such as textile ceramics, decorative ceramics, wear-resistant ceramics, environmentally friendly ceramics, and chemical ceramics. Among them, textile machinery ceramics and automotive exhaust purification honeycomb ceramics have advantages and levels in China. According to incomplete statistics, the total output value of industrial ceramics in Yixing City is nearly billions of yuan, with 5 companies having taxable sales exceeding 100 million yuan and 18 companies having sales exceeding 50 million yuan.

Jiangsu Yixing Nonmetallic Chemical Machinery Factory Co., Ltd

Zibo and Weifang in Shandong are industrial ceramic clusters with over 100 industrial ceramic enterprises and five major categories of industrial ceramic products: (a) wear-resistant alumina zirconia ceramic lining and ceramic components for paper machines, (b) environmentally friendly ceramics for desulfurization and denitrification, (c) ceramic cylinder sleeves and ball valves for petrochemical industry, (d) transparent quartz ceramics and silicon nitride ceramics, and (e) reaction sintered silicon carbide ceramics for heat and corrosion resistance. Representative enterprises include Shandong Gongtao Institute, Siyuan Technology, Zibo Huachuang, Weifang Huamei, and Weifang Zhida. In addition, Shandong Guoci, a listed company in Dongying, Shandong, has reached international standards in high-performance oxide nano ceramic powders (such as barium titanate, zirconia, and alumina), with nearly half of its products sold overseas. The advantages and characteristics of industrial ceramics in Zibo, Shandong Province lie in the industrial chain of ceramic powder preparation, ceramic machinery and equipment production, and structural ceramic product manufacturing and application. A considerable scale of alumina wear-resistant medium has been formed, which is used for high-speed paper machine wear-resistant ceramic parts in papermaking, ceramic valves and pipelines in thermal power systems, ceramic filters and lifting pipes in metallurgical casting, ceramic fillers in chemical industry, ceramic seals in various pumps, quartz crucibles in solar energy industry, vacuum tube shells in power industry, and ceramic cylinder liners and plungers in petroleum production. Weifang concentrates over 80% of China's reaction sintered silicon carbide ceramic products, with a production value of over one billion yuan and hundreds of product varieties. It not only meets domestic demand but also exports a large number to countries such as the United States and Europe.

Shandong Guoci Functional Materials Co., Ltd

Pingxiang in Jiangxi Province has a high concentration in chemical industry ceramics, ceramic fillers, wear-resistant ceramics, environmentally friendly filter ceramic membranes, and high-voltage electrical ceramics. It is an important production base for chemical ceramics and high-voltage electrical ceramics in China, and a number of large-scale and influential enterprises have emerged, such as Jiangxi Pingxiang Longfa Industrial Co., Ltd., Pingxiang Shunpeng New Materials Co., Ltd., and China National Materials Jiangxi Electrical Ceramics Co., Ltd., whose products occupy a high market share in domestic and foreign markets. Among them, Pingxiang Longfa is a domestic supplier of acid, temperature, and anti-corrosion chemical ceramics. Pingxiang Shunpeng's wear-resistant ceramic products have been exported to Europe, America, and Africa. In addition, there are hundreds of small and medium-sized ceramic enterprises. As the porcelain capital of China, Jingdezhen is relatively concentrated in the production of alumina ceramic shells and porcelain parts, such as Jingdezhen Haichuan Special Ceramics Co., Ltd., Jingdezhen Jinghua Special Ceramics Co., Ltd., and Jingdezhen Pin'an Special Ceramics Co., Ltd. Its process technology mainly comes from the former state-owned Jiujiu Factory. In addition, there are also precision ceramic enterprises specializing in piezoelectric ceramics, honeycomb ceramics, boron carbide bulletproof ceramics, zirconia ceramic inserts, and talc ceramics.

Jiangxi Pingxiang Longfa Industrial Co., Ltd

Loudi City and Xinhua County in Hunan Province are the main production bases for aluminum oxide electronic ceramics, aluminum oxide precision ceramics, and talc ceramics in China, with nearly a hundred enterprises concentrated, becoming local pillar industries. The products cover 95% aluminum oxide or talcum ceramics, fuse ceramic series, electric light source ceramic series, heat-resistant ceramic series, water slide ceramic series, and metalized ceramic shell series for new energy vehicle relays used in temperature controllers. Domestic ceramic water slide production enterprises such as Hunan Xinhua Xinxing Electronic Ceramics Co., Ltd. have emerged, and large enterprises such as Hunan Meicheng Ceramic Technology Co., Ltd. and Loudi Andiyas Electronic Ceramics Co., Ltd. have provided relay metalized ceramic shells for new energy vehicles such as BYD. In addition, as the capital of underglaze colorful ceramics, Liling City in Hunan Province has also formed a certain industrial cluster in high-voltage electric ceramics and precision ceramics, gathering a group of influential companies such as Hunan Liling Special Electric Porcelain Electrical Appliance Co., Ltd., Liling Huaxin Electric Porcelain Electrical Appliance Co., Ltd., and Hunan Zhengyang Precision Ceramics Co., Ltd.

Hunan Meicheng Ceramic Technology Co., Ltd

Tangshan City, Hebei Province is still a production base for various alumina ceramic tubes and physicochemical ceramics in China. The products mainly include alumina ceramic tubes, thermocouple protection tubes, high-temperature furnace parts, chemical ceramics, insulation ceramics, and special-shaped ceramics. In addition to meeting the domestic market, they are also exported to Asian countries such as Europe, America, and South Korea. A group of influential enterprises such as Tangshan Ceramic Group Industrial Experimental Factory Co., Ltd. and Tangshan Keshuo Special Ceramics Manufacturing Co., Ltd. have been concentrated.

Zhengzhou and its surrounding areas in Henan Province are still important producers of alumina ceramic powder and products, with an industrial scale of billions, and a group of influential enterprises such as China Aluminum Zhengzhou Research Institute and Henan Jiyuan Brothers Materials Co., Ltd. are concentrated. In the Jiaozuo area of Henan Province, a group of enterprises specializing in zirconia ceramic powder and products are concentrated, such as Jiaozuo Weina Technology Co., Ltd. and Jiaozuo Lifeng Industrial Co., Ltd.

Application status of structural ceramics in China

Structural ceramics are not only widely used in traditional industrial fields such as chemical metallurgy, mechanical manufacturing, power electronics, energy and environmental protection, but also increasingly applied in China's aerospace, deep space exploration, modern communication, consumer electronics, biomedical, national defense and military industries. A group of powerful enterprises, such as Chaozhou Third Ring Road, Shandong Guoci, Zhongcai High tech, Jiangxi Saici, Dongfang Zirconium Industry, Yixing Chemical Machinery, Foshan Ceramic Institute, Dongguan Xinbai, Pingxiang Longfa, Hunan Meicheng, Shandong Siyuan, and other companies or listed companies with an output value of over 100 million or even 3 billion, have emerged; At the same time, many technology-based medium-sized enterprises are also developing rapidly, such as Shenzhen Shangde, Zibo Huachuang, Zhengzhou Asus, Weifang Zhida, Zhejiang Hongtai, Guangdong Xiayang, Jiurong Tetao, Jiangsu Jinsheng

Dalian Jinma Boron Industry, Hunan Zhengyang, Shenyang Xingguang, and Beijing Zhongxing Shiqiang. In addition, there are hundreds of distinctive small structural ceramic enterprises. The following are the application fields of structural ceramics:

In the field of mechanical industry

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Ceramic cutting tools: The Si3N4 ceramic cutting tool series, independently developed by Tsinghua University, Beijing University of Science and Technology, and other institutions in China, exhibits cutting performance and is particularly suitable for the processing of cast iron parts and high-temperature alloys. In addition, the Si3N4+TiC (TiCN) composite ceramic cutting tools developed on this basis have been promoted and applied in more than ten industries and thousands of enterprises in China. Compared with traditional cutting tools, its cutting efficiency has been improved by 3-10 times, and its cutting durability has been improved by more than ten times, bringing significant increase in production and energy conservation benefits. The sales volume of cutting tools is about 800000 to 1 million pieces per year, and with the recovery and development of China's machinery manufacturing industry, their sales will be even larger.

Mechanical seal rings: China has become a widely used producer of ceramic seals in the mechanical industry, mainly made of SiC, Al2O3, and Si3N4 ceramic materials. Especially, fine crystalline single-phase silicon carbide products made of atmospheric sintered submicron silicon carbide powder have been applied in large pumps in chemical plants, oil refineries, centrifuges, hydrodynamic turbines, oil wells, and gas wells. The service life of silicon carbide sliding sealing rings used on fuel pumps and cooling water pumps in cars is usually several times longer than that of the entire machine. Representative enterprises include Zhengzhou Asus, Zhejiang Dongxin, and Beijing ZTE Shiqiang, with industry output value reaching over 1 billion yuan.

Precision ceramic bearings: In the past decade, the development of precision ceramic bearings in China has been rapid, becoming an important direction for the new generation of structural ceramics. The main products include rolling bearings and sliding bearings, mainly using three wear-resistant ceramic materials: Si3N4, SiC, and ZrO2. Among them, rolling bearings tend to be more pressure sintered Si3N4 ceramics and ZrO2 ceramics, while sliding bearings mainly use composite materials of SiC or SiC/graphite sintered under normal pressure. The ranking result of the rolling life of various ceramic bearings is Al2O3

Silicon carbide sliding bearings produced by Beijing Zhongxing Shiqiang

Silicon nitride ceramic bearings

Petrochemical Metallurgy

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Ceramic valves and cylinder liners: In recent years, many units have become increasingly mature in the research and production of ceramic valves, and a number of ceramic valve manufacturers have emerged, such as Dongguan Xinbai Structural Ceramics Co., Ltd., Fujian Zhisheng Special Ceramics Co., Ltd., Tianjin Shengkai, Beijing Zhongxing Shiqiang, Shandong Siyuan, Zibo Huachuang, and other companies. The materials for ceramic valves include Al2O3, ZrO2, ZTA (ZrO2 toughened Al2O3), SiC, and other ceramics. Ceramic valves have characteristics such as heat resistance, wear resistance, and corrosion resistance, and their lifespan is more than ten times longer than traditional metal valves. Similarly, these wear-resistant ceramics are also applied to ceramic cylinder liners used in the petroleum extraction industry. Currently, Zibo Huachuang Precision Ceramics Co., Ltd. in Shandong is a large ceramic cylinder liner production enterprise.

Alumina ceramic cylinder liner

Zirconia ceramic ball valve

Boron nitride, aluminum titanate, and silicon nitride ceramics are typical applications in structural ceramic materials in the metallurgical industry. Hexagonal boron nitride ceramics and their composite materials have been widely used in the high-temperature field of metallurgy, such as crucibles, vessels, and conveying pumps for melting non-ferrous metals, precious metals, and rare metals, as well as boron single crystal melting vessels, horizontal continuous casting separation rings, nozzles for amorphous tapes, side sealing plates for thin strip continuous casting, thermocouple protection tubes, composite ceramic evaporation boats, etc. The thermocouple protection tube made of boron nitride based ceramics can be directly inserted into the molten steel and continuously measured for 8-10 hours.

Boron nitride based ceramic separation ring

Silicon nitride ceramics are gradually replacing aluminum titanate ceramics as many important high-temperature components in the aluminum casting industry, such as heating element protection tubes, degassing shafts and rotors, and riser tubes. In the past, this series of silicon nitride heat-resistant components was mainly produced and monopolized by Germany and Japan in the market. Currently, breakthroughs have been made in this field in China, and companies such as Beijing ZTE Shiqiang have started production and application.

Various silicon nitride high-temperature ceramic protective tubes for aluminum liquid casting industry

In the field of new energy and environmental protection

The new generation of structural ceramic materials used in the new energy field are becoming increasingly diverse, such as the scandium zirconium ceramic substrate used by the ceramic company Chaozhou Sanhuan to meet the needs of fuel cell industrialization. In addition, the high-temperature and thermal shock resistant quartz ceramic crucible used in the production of large-sized polycrystalline silicon ingots in China's polycrystalline silicon solar cell industry has developed from 0.8 meters in the past to 1.2 meters in the current size prepared by domestic companies such as China National Materials Corporation. At present, China has become a major producer of this product globally, with hundreds of thousands produced annually.

Quartz ceramic crucible

Environmental friendly filter ceramics: With the pressure of environmental pollution in China, filter ceramics or ceramic filter membrane products used for high-temperature flue gas desulfurization, gas-solid separation, and sewage purification are rapidly developing. Dozens of enterprises in China, including Jiangsu Jiuwu High tech, Shandong Gongtao Institute, and Yixing Chemical Machinery Factory, have produced various types of ceramic filter membrane tubes and components, as well as overall services for environmental engineering contracting in sewage treatment and high-temperature flue gas treatment.

Ceramic filter membrane tubes and components

The production scale and product quality of domestically produced cordierite honeycomb ceramic carriers used in automotive exhaust purification ternary filters have significantly improved. Enterprises represented by Yixing Chemical Machinery Co., Ltd., Yixing Prince, and Jiangsu Gaochun can now mass produce various specifications and models of honeycomb ceramic carriers for gasoline and diesel vehicles.

In addition, the foam filter ceramics used in the casting process can eliminate inclusions and improve the purity and mechanical properties of the casting, which is a key component in the production of castings. Such foam filter ceramics are made of Al2O3, SiC, ZrO2 (PSZ), cordierite, etc. The research and development of domestic foam filter ceramics is still in its infancy. The main research and production units include Shandong Shengquan, Shandong Silicon Garden, Foshan Ceramic Research Institute, etc. At present, the annual output value has reached hundreds of millions of yuan.

Optical communication and smartphone field

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The core and sleeve of important components in optical communication equipment, such as fiber optic connectors, are currently made of high-strength and high toughness nano zirconia ceramics worldwide. They are generally produced by high-temperature sintering through ceramic powder injection molding. In the past, they were mainly produced by Japanese companies Adamant and Toto, but in recent years, domestic enterprises have taken the lead, mainly including more than ten enterprises such as Chaozhou Third Ring Road, Jincheng Foxconn, Ningbo Yunsheng, and Shenzhen Weiyi. The annual production has reached several billion, accounting for more than 80% of the global production.

Nano zirconia ceramic inserts and components

With the rapid development of China's smartphone industry, the new generation of high-performance nano zirconia ceramics has gained recognition in mobile phone casings and fingerprint recognition. The Huawei P7, Xiaomi 6, and Xiaomi MIX series phones have successively adopted exquisite ceramic back covers in 3D and Unibody, making the whole machine like jade. The developed ceramic fingerprint recognition film for mobile phones uses 0.08mm nano ceramic thin films instead of traditional glass materials. At present, domestic companies such as Chaozhou Third Ring Road and Dongguan Xinbai have formed large-scale production, supplying large domestic and foreign brand mobile phone manufacturers such as Xiaomi and OPPO.

In the field of national defense and military industry

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The application of new generation structural ceramics in the field of national defense and military industry has developed rapidly in China in the past decade, mainly including transmissive missile antenna covers, transmissive ceramics, laser ceramics, ceramic bulletproof armor, etc. Missile antenna cover materials include quartz ceramic, silicon nitride ceramic, etc. Among them, quartz ceramic antenna covers have been mass-produced. Translucent ceramics mainly include yttrium oxide, magnesium oxide, magnesium aluminum spinel, alon, etc. At present, domestic companies such as Sinoma High tech and Shanghai Silicate Research Institute have certain advantages in the research and preparation technology of quartz ceramic antenna covers and transparent transparent wave transmitting ceramics. In recent years, there has been a significant increase in domestic production and variety of bulletproof ceramics, mainly in atmospheric pressure sintered silicon carbide and alumina ceramics, and hot pressure sintered boron carbide ceramics. Nearly 20 enterprises have the production capacity of these bulletproof ceramics, such as Dalian Jinma Boron Industry, Ningxia Machinery Research Institute, and Jiyuan Brothers Materials Co., Ltd.

(Left) Quartz ceramic antenna cover (Right) Magnesium aluminum spinel transparent ceramic