The global carbon fiber prepreg market will reach 4.9 billion U.S. dollars in 2026, and epoxy prepreg will still dominate

The global carbon fiber prepreg market will reach 4.9 billion U.S. dollars in 2026, 

and epoxy prepreg will still dominate

In March 2021, the Research and Markets website released the "Global Carbon Fiber Prepreg Market Analysis Report 2021-2026". It is estimated that the global carbon fiber prepreg market will reach 4.9 billion U.S. dollars in 2026.

Compared with other types of prepreg, carbon fiber prepreg has many obvious advantages, such as excellent lightweight, high specific strength, high specific modulus, high tensile and compressive strength, low thermal expansion coefficient and fatigue resistance, etc. . Due to the rapid changes in market dynamics and the increasing demand for lightweight and durable materials, the demand for lightweight materials in key industries such as aerospace, defense, and automobiles continues to increase, which creates new revenue space for carbon fiber prepreg products.

Due to the impact of the new crown epidemic, the carbon fiber prepreg market will experience a sharp decline in 2020. The performance of major global carbon fiber prepreg suppliers in 2020 has shown a short-term impact on the market, with a sharp decline in revenue, huge losses, staff layoffs, cash exhaustion, and production suspension. Nevertheless, with the gradual rebound in aircraft and automobile production, the long-term prospects still seem promising and ultimately have a positive impact on the market.

At present, carbon fiber prepregs account for more than 80% of the entire prepreg market. A large number of aviation aircraft using carbon fiber composite materials-the decline in productivity such as B787 and A350XWB will be one of the main reasons for delaying the market recovery. During the 2020 epidemic, although the aviation sector and the automotive industry are considered to be most affected, at this stage, carbon fiber composite materials used in wind energy and marine industries have seen a certain growth, which has become a growth point for the carbon fiber prepreg business.

In terms of application areas, the aerospace and defense end-use industries will remain the world's largest market for carbon fiber prepregs. According to the type of end-use industry, the analysis report subdivides the market into aerospace and defense, wind energy, automotive, civil engineering, sporting goods, marine and other fields. Although the current situation is bleak, the Ministry of Aviation and Defense is expected to continue to advance and maintain its dominant position in the market by 2026. On the other hand, the automotive industry is expected to see a turnaround and recover at the fastest rate during the forecast period. Due to the increasing concern about environmental pollution and the expected increase in the penetration of composite materials in new aircraft projects, the demand for fuel-efficient vehicles remains unabated, which may stimulate the demand for carbon fiber prepregs in the next few years.

As far as the type of resin matrix is concerned, carbon fiber/epoxy based prepreg still dominates. According to the type of matrix, carbon fiber prepreg can be divided into epoxy resin prepreg, BMI prepreg, cyanate ester prepreg, polyimide prepreg, phenolic prepreg, PPS prepreg, PEEK prepreg Impregnation and other prepregs, among which epoxy prepregs will dominate the market for a long time before 2026. Carbon fiber/epoxy resin prepreg systems are commonly used in critical applications such as aircraft fuselages, wings, control surfaces, engines and nacelles, fan blades, and interior trim. In addition, BMI prepreg is expected to grow at the fastest rate in the next five years.

In terms of regional distribution, the Asia-Pacific region, especially the Chinese market, has huge development potential. In 2020, almost all regions of the world will experience a market recession. Despite this, North America will still be the largest market for carbon fiber prepregs during the forecast period. This is mainly due to the perfect supply chain that has been formed in the region, and a large number of first-tier suppliers, original equipment manufacturers and pre-processing manufacturers are concentrated in this region. However, during the forecast period, the Asia-Pacific market will develop the fastest. For example, the upcoming commercial aircraft project (C919), the continuous transfer of China's sporting goods equipment manufacturing industry, and the opening of assembly plants in China by Boeing and Airbus are all likely There is a healthy long-term demand for carbon fiber prepreg in the region.