World Activated Carbon

World Activated Carbon

Growth in the world activated carbon market will total 6.0% annually through 2020, reaching 1.9 million metric tons. Gains will be driven by worldwide increases in investments in industrial air purification, as mercury emissions reduction becomes a priority for industrial and industrializing countries alike.

This report segments the activated carbon industry by type and market. Data is provided in thousand metric tons and million US dollars.

Major activated carbon types include:
Powdered Activated Carbon
Granular Activated Carbon

As of 2015, Powdered had surpassed Granular to become the largest of these and will continue to be the fastest growing type, accounting for 52% of the market by 2020. Growth is due primarily to advances in mercury removal from industrial air streams, following increasing attention to industrial air pollution.

Major activated carbon markets include:
Water Treatment
Industrial Air Purification
Food & Beverage Processing
Motor Vehicle
Mining
Pharmaceutical & Medical

Water Treatment was the leading outlet in 2015, accounting for 29% of demand, although rapid gains in Industrial Air Purification and mercury control initiatives will set this application on pace to account for nearly equal market share by 2020.

World regions and countries covered in the study include:
North America (US, Canada, Mexico)
Western Europe (Germany, France, Italy, etc.)
Asia/Pacific (China, Japan, India, etc.)

Asia/Pacific will see the strongest advances among world regions through 2020, due to China’s increased regulation of air and water treatment following the ratification of its Thirteenth Five-Year Plan, as well as the country’s economic growth and rising urbanization. As industrial air purification is a growing market worldwide, North American producers will also ramp up production of activated carbon.

More than 200 companies participate in the global activated carbon industry as of 2015, and this number is expected to rise significantly by 2020, given rising demand and new opportunities for market share. Major suppliers of activated carbon include ADA Carbon Solutions, Arkema (CECA), Cabot, Calgon Carbon, CPL Carbon Link, Evoqua Water Technologies, Futamura Chemical, Hayleys (Haycarb), International Chemical Investors (CarboTech), Kuraray, Osaka Gas, and WestRock (Ingevity).