PVDF Membrane Market

Updated on : August 08, 2024

PVDF Membrane Market

The global PVDF membrane market was valued at USD 779 million in 2022 and is projected to reach USD 1,126 million by 2027, at 7.7% cagr from 2022 to 2027. The key factors driving the market growth are the increased demand for PVDF membranes from biopharmaceutical companies and stringent regulations pertaining to the release and treatment of industrial waste.

Attractive Opportunities in the PVDF Membrane Market

Note: e-estimated p-projected.

Source: Expert Interviews, Secondary Sources, and MarketsandMarkets Analysis

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PVDF Membrane Market Dynamics

Driver: Advancement in membrane filtration technologies

Consistent technological advancements in the membrane filtration industry have fuelled the global membrane market. Emerging membrane filtration technologies, such as membrane distillation (MD) and forward osmosis (FO), have proven to be beneficial in terms of low energy consumption.

Membrane distillation is a separation technique that uses a porous, liquid-unwettable lyophobic membrane. Due to the polymer's lipophobicity, only vapors may pass through membrane pores. On the other side of the membrane, in an air gap, a cooling liquid, or an inert carrier gas, condensation occurs. MD is typically used to treat water solutions; therefore, hydrophobic membranes made of polymers, such as polypropylene (PP), polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), or poly (vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF), are utilized in the process. In direct contact membrane distillation (DMCD), PVDF is preferred by researchers for fabricating membranes due to its solubility in common solvents. The PTFE are also more brittle and has higher degree of crystallinity. This can act as a constraint at elevated temperatures.

Restraint: High production cost of PVDF membranes

Membranes play a vital role in controlling the permeation of specific components. Membrane materials can affect the properties and characteristics of a membrane, such as hydrophobicity and surface charge, thus altering the separation characteristic of a membrane. PVDF membranes with adequate characteristics are not available at a reasonable cost, as the membrane industry is capital-intensive. These membranes are costlier than PTFE and other nitrocellulose membranes. The cost of production and maintenance of these membranes is high, thus giving rise to alternatives that are more cost-effective. The fluctuations in raw material costs and equipment costs required for membrane manufacturing restrict new players from entering the membrane manufacturing market. Updating the technology of membranes and the cost associated with R&D also add to capital investments.

The initial investment cost for setting up membrane modules in end applications is very high for small players. The existing players are dominant in the market, which makes it difficult for new entrants to establish high-cost manufacturing units and market their products. This is restraining the growth of the PVDF membrane market, especially in emerging economies.

Opportunity: Increasing  use of PVDF membranes in venting and medical accessories

PVDF membranes are used for gas filtration, vapor filtration, medicine filtration, and filtration in the food industry. The different characteristics of PVDF hydrophobic membranes include high flow rate and long service life at low operating pressures, which make the membranes ideal for sterile filtration and venting of air/gases. These membranes are used in a wide variety of applications, such as IV filters, drug filtration, acid analysis, protein concentration, antibiotics production, blood plasma processing, drainage bags, medical device enclosures, vent caps, IV administration sets, surgical smoke filters, and suction filters. 

Challenge: Shortage of key raw materials

The use of PVDF is increasing in various applications. The growth in the demand of PVDF has been stretched by lithium battery manufacturing, photovoltaic backplane, and energy storage, among other applications. R-142B being the main raw material in the production of PVDF has also seen increase in price due to the rising demand. The latest price of the raw material has risen to USD 29.2 per kg, a monthly increase of 10% and a cumulative increase of 12 times in the past year. R-142B, is largely exported from China, may hamper the production of PVDF. The current increase in the number of COVID-19 cases in China will pose a challenge to the export of raw materials. This scenario has affected the price of PVDF as well. Most of the cell factories regard PVDF as the scarcest material in the future. In the application of PVDF membranes, due to the price barrier, materials like PTFE and nitrocellulose are posing an increasing threat to the market growth of PVDF membrane. Nitrocellulose are cheaper when compared to PVDF and are being preferred due to the pricing barrier for immunoblotting application. Similarly, PTFE membranes can act as a substitute for applications such as membrane distillation and tensile structures.

PVDF Membrane Market Ecosystem

Source: Company Websites and MarketsandMarkets Analysis

In terms of value, the ultrafiltration segment is projected to account for the largest share of the PVDF Membrane market, by technology, during the forecast period.

The construction segment accounted for a share of 49.6% in terms of value, of the overall PVDF membrane market in 2021.  Ultrafiltration involves finely porous membranes to separate water and micro solutes from macromolecules and colloids. In ultrafiltration, the mechanism for the separation of the solvent from the solute/colloidal particle is similar to that of reverse osmosis and nanofiltration, with distinction in pore sizes. UF also finds applications in wine and other beverage industries. It is used to filter water to remove organic contaminants. It is also used to improve wine concentrations, remove the color from heavy press juice fractions, remove bitter tannins from red varietals, and many other applications

 Biopharmaceutical segment  is projected to account for one of the fastest growth of the PVDF Membrane market, by end-use industry, during the forecast period

Biopharmaceutical is the largest and fastest-growing end-use industry in the PVDF membrane market due to its extensive use in filtration applications, such as drug filtration, venting, and acid analysis. Its unique properties, such as chemical inertness, ability to sustain high temperatures, good mechanical properties, and high filtration efficiency, make PVDF membranes suitable for applications involving exposure to corrosive environments and contact with gases, acids, solvents, and alkaline solutions.

APAC is expected to be the fastest-growing market during the forecast period.

Based on region, Asia Pacific is a key market to produce PVDF Membrane and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 8.5% in terms of value during the forecasted period. The availability of low-cost raw materials and labour, coupled with growing industrialization, makes the region an attractive investment destination for PVDF Membrane manufacturers. The rising population, urbanization, and industrialization are some of the factors that will drive the PVDF Membrane market in this region.

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PVDF Membrane Market Players

Major players operating in the global PVDF Membrane market include Arkema S.A. (France), Merck Millipore (US), KOCH Separation Solutions (US), Pall Corporation (US), Cytiva Life Science (US), CITIC Envirotech Pte Ltd (Singapore), Bio-Rad laboratories (US), Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (US), Membrane Solutions, LLC. (US), GVS Filter Technology (Italy), and Toray Industries, Inc. (Japan)

PVDF Membrane Market Report Scope

This research report categorizes the PVDF Membrane market based on type, technology, application, end-use industry, and region.

PVDF Membrane Market based on Type:

• Hydrophobic
• Hydrophilic

PVDF Membrane Market based on Technology:

• Microfiltration
• Ultrafiltration
• Nanofiltration

PVDF Membrane Market based on Application:

• General Filtration
• Sample Preparation
• Bead-based Assays
• Others

PVDF Membrane Market based on End-use Industry:

• Biopharmaceutical
• Industrial
• Food & Beverage
• Others

PVDF Membrane Market based on Region:

• Asia Pacific
• Europe
• North America
• South America
• Middle East & Africa

Recent Developments

• In April 2021, Koch Separation Solutions launched Indu-Cor HD; an enhanced technology designed to treat various industrial waste streams more effectively. It provides a higher packing density of up to 300%, which makes crossflow filtration more economical while taking up less space.
• In May 2022, GVS Filter Technology acquired 100% stake of the Italian Group Haemotronic, a leading supplier of advanced filtration solutions for highly critical applications and a specialized producer of components and bags for the medical sector with plants in Italy and Mexico. This acquisition helps in the growth of GVS's product portfolio, which can thus integrate and expand the range of products offered and strengthen its presence in the European and North American markets within the healthcare sector.

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