Activated Alumina Market - By Application (Adsorbents, Desiccants, Catalysts), By Sector (Oil & Gas, Water Treatment, Chemical) & Forecast, 2021-2027

Activated Alumina Market Size

The activated alumina market size was 146.2 million in 2020 and will grow at a CAGR of 8.2% from 2021 to 2027. The proliferating oil & gas production coupled with increasing oil & gas exploration activities across the globe will augment the product demand.
 

Activated alumina, also known as alumina or Al₂O₃, is a solid form of aluminum oxide. It is highly porous, possesses high resistance to thermal shock, great selectivity, excellent absorption rate, exhibits great surface area, high pole-molecular absorbent characteristic, etc. It does not soften, sell or shrink when immersed in water. The product is popularly used in water treatment and oil & gas industries.
 

Rising fuel demand from major end-use sectors will augment the oil & gas production and supply in the coming decade. Activated alumina possesses the ability to absorb liquids and gases without altering its form. It is used for gas mixture purification by the optional adsorption of molecules. It is also used as a desiccant for water adsorption. Moreover, it is used in the form of catalyst for the Claus process, primarily for the natural gas desulfurization application.
 

Global oil production was recorded at 95.2 Mb/d (million barrels per day) in 2019, witnessing a growth of over 4% between 2016 and 2019. According to Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), countries including Iraq, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Kuwait have increased their level of production output. The global oil consumption was recorded at 98.3 Mb/d in 2019, witnessing a year-on-year growth of approximately 0.95%.
 

According to EIA, the annual crude oil production in the U.S. reached 12.23 Mb/d in 2019, which is approximately 11% or 1.24 Mb/d more as compared to 2018 production levels. Crude oil production in Texas has increased by around 333% or 3.9 Mb/d since 2010.
 

The unconventional onshore oil production will be led by North America, which is anticipated to secure over 50% of the global production by the end of 2030. Shifting focus toward the recovery of shale oil gas in the U.S. to be the chief factor triggering the expansion of regional unconventional onshore oil production. According to EIA, the U.S. produced over 2.5 billion barrels of crude oil from tight (shale) oil resources in 2019, which is more than 60% of total U.S. oil production.
 

Shale oil & gas activities also enable the storage of crude oil, further stabilizing the price of crude oil at a considerable level. Such trends are expected to increase unconventional onshore and offshore oil & gas production capacities, which will further drive the activated alumina market share by the end of the forecast period.
 

However, volatility in raw material prices might hinder the activated alumina market growth in near future. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has substantially disrupted the supply-chain across the industry. Governments of several countries opted for nationwide lockdown, temporary shutdown of production plants and manufacturing facilities, restricted mobility of civilians, etc., as preventive measures to reduce the outburst of the pandemic. This has substantially affected the trade as well as demand for activated alumina from major end-user sectors.
 

Activated Alumina Market Analysis

In 2020, adsorbent application volume was over 34 kilo tons in activated alumina market. The product is regarded as a highly-effective adsorbent in both liquid and gas applications. The product is used as an adsorbent in various industries, primarily for the separation of components from other media. As an adsorbent, activated alumina is popularly used for water filtration application. The product serves as a cost-effective adsorbent for the removal of fluoride from water. It is also used to remove other contaminants such as lead, sulfur, and arsenic during water treatment.
 

The catalyst segment will generate over USD 80 million by 2027 owing to its application in producing multiple compounds. Activated alumina is used in manufacturing compounds such as hydrogen peroxide and polyethylene. It is majorly used in the sulphur recovery process in oil & gas industry and also acts as inert carrier in various processes.
 

The water treatment sector holds over 30% share in activated alumina market. The product is widely used in the water treatment industry for the removal of fluoride and other contaminants. It can be used as a point-of-use or point-of-entry for water treatment. It absorbs the contaminants rather than filtering them. It provides an effective solution for water treatment of the water source with a relatively high sulfate concentration or total dissolved solids level. The increasing demand for clean water, stringent regulations for effluent treatment, and supporting government initiatives to augment water treatment activities will drive product consumption in this sector.
 

Chemical segment will generate over USD 55 million by 2027. The product is utilized as a catalyst in production of various bulk and specialty chemicals. Activated alumina is further gaining traction as desiccant for chemicals such as fluoride and arsenic. It follows adsorption process during its role as desiccant and can be regenerated to its original adsorption efficiency after heating it to temperature of 110 to 150 degrees Celsius.
 

In 2020, Asia Pacific held over 30% share in activated alumina market. It can be ascribed to the proliferating oil & gas production coupled with rapid development in the regional water treatment and chemical industry. The regional oil production witnessed a growth of around 33 thousand barrels/day between 2018 and 2019; whereas the oil consumption increased by around 720 thousand barrels/day during the same period.
 

The availability of raw materials, cheap labor, increasing urbanization, and rising public & private investments are some of the factors augmenting the growth of regional industries. Rising population, stringent government regulations, and support initiatives to bolster water treatment activities in the region will also prosper the regional activated alumina market value.
 

Activated Alumina Market Share

Key product manufacturers in the activated alumina industry are

• BASF SE
• Sumitomo Chemical Co. Ltd.
• Porocel Industries LLC
• Huber Engineered Materials
• Axens
• Honeywell International Inc.
• Sorbead India
• Camfil
• DYNAMIC Adsorbents Inc.
• CHALCO Shandong Advanced Material Co. Ltd.
• Shandong Zhongxing New Material Technology Co. Ltd.
• Jiangsu Jingjing New Material Co. Ltd.
• Global Adsorbents Private Limited
   

These prominent players have adopted many aggressive strategies, such as production capacity expansion, mergers & acquisitions, etc., to augment their competitive edge in the market. In 2020, Evonik completed the acquisition of Porocel Industries LLC for USD 210 million to bolster the growth of its catalyst business. In the same year, Axens signed Asset Sales Agreement (ASA) in order to complete the acquisition of Rio Tinto Alcan’s activated alumina business in Canada. CHALCO Shandong Advanced Material Co. Ltd. upgraded its production capacity in 2018.
 

The activated alumina market report includes in-depth coverage of the industry with estimates & forecast in terms of volume in Tons revenue in USD Thousand from 2017 to 2027 for the following segments:

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By Application

• Adsorbents
• Desiccant
• Catalysts
• Others

By Sector

• Oil & Gas
• Water Treatment
• Chemical
• Others

The above information is provided on a regional and country basis for the following:

By Region

• North America
  • U.S.
  • Canada
• Europe
  • Germany
  • UK
  • France
  • Spain
  • Italy
  • Russia
• Asia Pacific
  • China
  • India
  • Japan
  • South Korea
  • Australia
  • Indonesia
  • Malaysia
• Latin America
  • Brazil
  • Mexico
• Middle East & Africa
  • South Africa
  • Saudi Arabia
  • UAE
  • Kuwait