TPU, or thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer, is a high-molecular-weight polymer obtained through the polymerization reaction of diisocyanates, chain extenders, and macromolecular diols. It features high modulus, high strength, high elongation, and high elasticity, as well as excellent resistance to abrasion, oil, low temperatures, and aging. TPU finds wide-ranging applications in fields such as footwear materials, films, adhesives, pipes, wires and cables, and automotive components.

TPU was first developed successfully in 1958 by Germany’s Bayer Corporation. Subsequently, other chemical companies such as BASF of Germany, DuPont of the United States, and Dow Chemical also achieved successful development one after another. In the 1970s, Japan introduced TPU production equipment from Germany. Mainland China began to come into contact with TPU production technology in the 1980s, but for a long time it failed to achieve breakthroughs in both R&D and process technology. After the 1990s, as market demand for TPU materials grew, and with the entry of European, American, and Taiwanese enterprises into mainland China, several local Chinese companies (such as Wanhua Chemical) started engaging in the production and sales of TPU.

According to the “2017-2020 Global TPU Industry Market In-depth Research and Investment Strategy Report” released by the New Thought Industry Research Center, currently, the production and consumption of TPU worldwide are mainly concentrated in North America, Europe, and Asia. Among these regions, North America and Europe have earlier developed TPU industries with more advanced technologies; companies such as Lubrizol, BASF, Covestro, and Huntsman enjoy strong competitive advantages in the global market. The TPU industry in Asia, represented by countries like Japan, South Korea, China, and India, has also shown relatively good development. In particular, China and India have experienced rapid economic growth in recent years, leading to a sharp increase in both TPU production and consumption. However, their production levels still lag behind those of the United States and Europe, and their products largely remain in the mid-to-low-end market segments. In 2016, global TPU production reached 1 million tons.

TPU boasts characteristics such as elasticity, transparency, oil resistance, and wear resistance, and is an environmentally friendly material. Thanks to its outstanding performance, TPU is often used as a highly effective substitute for conventional plastics and other raw materials. In the future, the TPU market will continue to grow and exhibit the following development trends:

TPU modification is a hot topic.

Blending TPU with certain polymer materials such as TPE, PA, POM, PC, and PVC can yield polymer alloys with complementary properties, thereby enhancing the elasticity, wear resistance, and impact resistance of these other materials. Meanwhile, TPU can be compounded with flame retardants, antistatic agents, conductive fillers, and other additives to impart special properties like flame retardancy, antistatic performance, and conductivity, thus broadening its range of applications. Consequently, in the future, modification technologies that combine TPU with other materials will become the primary development trend in global TPU technology.

The Asia-Pacific region remains the region driven by growth in demand.

The Asia-Pacific region, including China and India, is currently one of the fastest-growing and most dynamically developing regions in the global TPU market. In the future, as economic growth slows down in China, India, and other countries in the region, and as the TPU market matures, the pace of growth in demand for TPU will moderate somewhat. However, this growth rate will still remain higher than that in the U.S. and Europe. At the same time, labor costs in China, India, and other parts of the region remain low, and there is considerable room for technological advancement, giving these markets significant potential for continued demand growth.

The automotive parts sector has great application potential.

TPU can be formulated into TPU/PP plastic alloys, TPU/PC plastic alloys, TPU/PVC plastic alloys, TPU/PA6 plastic alloys, and TPU long-fiber composites, which are then used in various automotive interior and exterior components, including car dashboards, bumpers, floor mats, front-end and door assemblies, and underbody protection systems. TPU also boasts strong competitive advantages in the field of automotive lightweighting. In the future, the proportion of TPU applications in automotive components will continue to rise, presenting investment opportunities for businesses.