Opacifiers Market
Overview:
Opacifiers are additives that are added to transparent objects in order to make them opaque. They offer a richer appearance and increase the visual viscosity of products in surfactant-based formulations. The conversion of a transparent object into opaque one is done through three processes, namely, thermal expansion, crystallization, and suspended micro-bubbles. Tin oxide and zircon compounds are two common opacifiers.
By product, the opacifiers market has been segmented into titanium dioxide, opaque polymers, zircon, zinc oxide, cerium oxide, antimony trioxide, tin oxide, and arsenic trioxide. Among these, titanium dioxide is the leading segment owing to its extensive use as a whitener, scattering visible light resulting in opaque color and creating reflective and bright quality when applied to a surface. Additionally, it is used as a thickener and pigment for creams and sunscreen products owing to its transparent and UV absorption characteristics.
Based on application, the market has been segmented into paints & coatings, plastics, ceramics, paper, personal care, inks, fibers, home care, glass, and others. The paints & coatings segment accounted for a major market share in 2017 on account of the high demand for paints & coatings in major end-use industries such as aerospace, automotive, construction, consumer electronics, marine, and ship-building.
Regional Analysis
Regionally, the global market has been segmented into five regions, namely, Asia-Pacific, North America, Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East & Africa.
The market in Asia-Pacific dominated the opacifiers in 2017 due to the high demand for paints & coatings in the automotive, aerospace, construction, and marine industries. The rapid industrialization and urbanization in the region are the primary factor affecting the growth of the Opacifiers market.
The demand from the paints & coationgs, aerospace, defence, consumer goods, and electronics industries is driving the market in the North Ameican region.
Competitive Analysis
Some of the manufacturers operating in the global opacifiers market are DowDuPont (US), Arkema (France), Ashland (US), TAYCA (Japan), The Chemours Company (US), Tronox Limited (US), KRONOS Worldwide, Inc. (US), CRISTAL (Saudi Arabia), Alkane Resources Ltd (Australia), En-Tech Polymer.Co.,Ltd (South Korea), and Venator Materials PLC (UK).
