Carbon Prepreg Market

Carbon Prepreg Market Growth Outlook (2022-2032)

The global carbon prepreg market was valued at US$ 4.9 billion in 2021 and is projected to reach US$ 15.7 billion by 2032, registering a CAGR of 11.5% from 2022 to 2032. 

Epoxy-based Carbon Prepreg Resin type is expected to be the highest revenue-generating segment, projected to grow at a CAGR of over 13% during 2022 – 2032.

Report Attributes	Details
Growth Rate Between 2017-2021 (In CAGR)	8.5%
Market Size in 2022	US$ 5.3 Billion
Market Forecast in 2032	US$ 15.7 Billion
Global Market Growth Rate (2022-2032)	11.5%
U.S. Market CAGR (2022 – 2032)	11.6%
Key Companies Covered	Chemical Computing Group ULC ACP Composites Inc Hexcel Corporation Lingol Corporation SGL Carbon SE Solvay SA Toray Industries Gurit Holding AG Mitsubishi Rayon Co.Ltd Park Aerospace Corp

Revenue of Carbon Prepreg Market from 2017 to 2021 Compared to Demand Outlook for 2022 to 2032

As per the Global Carbon Prepreg Market research by Fact.MR - a market research and competitive intelligence provider, historically, from 2017 to 2021, the value of the Carbon Prepreg Market increased at around 8.5% CAGR.

The key revenue drivers which affect the Carbon Prepreg demand include an increase in the usage of carbon prepreg for various automobile components such as wheel archers, brake ducts, splitters and even the engine components to make a bike, or car more efficient and lightweight.

Urge of governments to produce more wind energy is helping the rise of the market, and the aerospace market is also been dominated by carbon prepreg as companies such as Boeing and Airbus are using carbon pregs for manufacturing combat, commercial and cargo transport aircraft which are lightweight and are strong in nature.

Furthermore, the long life of carbon prepreg-based products and their low maintenance requirements are significant factors boosting the carbon prepreg market during the forecast period.

What Factors Are Propelling Carbon Prepreg Demand?

The key factors which are propelling the Carbon Prepreg demand are its properties like thermal resistance, anti-corrosion, tensile strength, lightweight characteristic, and easy moldability.

Increased demand for high-efficiency automotive necessitates the development of a design that is less in weight and has high tensile strength. Besides, the replacement of numerous metal parts is done by the companies to reduce the weight of the product, owing to which carbon prepreg demand has been increasing.

Aerospace and defence, sports and recreation, and wind energy are amongst the key end-use industries of carbon prepreg. Due to its lightweight characteristic, fatigue resilience, and high rigidity, carbon fiber prepregs are commonly employed in the manufacturing of aviation parts. As a result, the worldwide carbon prepreg market is being driven by a rise in the number of commercial aircraft being produced.

Due to global emphasis on boosting car fuel efficiency and increased demand for electric vehicles, the automobile category is expected to account for a large market share. Carbon Prepreg is also employed in professional sports as a top-tier material for hockey sticks, tennis racquets, archery bows, and carbon fiber golf clubs, with carbon fiber rowing shells and bicycles becoming the new normal. Carbon prepreg is utilized in a variety of other products, including clothes and protective gear, helmets and shoes.

What Factors are restraining the Growth of Carbon Prepreg Market?

Carbon fiber manufacturing is a highly complex process. The machines needed to manufacture carbon fiber have also made considerable progress in terms of pricing. These machines cost between US$ 200 thousand to US$ 1 Mn and thus elevate the price of the final product. Besides, the recycling cost of carbon prepreg is significantly high.

Can Substitution of Carbon Prepreg with Other Materials be a Threat in the Coming Future?

Traditional vehicle manufacturers have been investigating the use of natural fibers to build the composite more stable than carbon-prepreg composites. Bcomp Ltd, a Swiss company, has made significant progress in the development of Amplitex, a robust flax-fiber woven fabric that can be coated with conventional epoxy resin. It can be woven in a variety of methods and weights to suit a variety of purposes, just like carbon prepreg. Amplitex is wrapped in a 'Powerribs' interior for semi-structural application as body panels. It is made of flax, though resembles a 3D grid type to give the finished part more resilience.

Lightweight materials such as carbon prepreg require significant energy and emit a large volume of CO2 during production. The carbonization process used to create fibers necessitates temperatures ranging from 1,000 - 3,000 degrees Celsius, as well as a significant quantity of energy. Furthermore, carbon prepreg cannot be recycled into high-quality carbon-fiber fabric.

Bcomp claims that replacing carbon prepreg with a combination of Amplitex and Powerribs at work decreases CO2 emissions by 75% (16.9kg of CO2 per Amplitex square metre with Powerribs and epoxy vs. 45.6kg of CO2 per square metre with carbon prepreg). Natural fibers also cost less than 30% and offer the same durability and weight as carbon fiber for fine wires.

There is no high temperature process between the field and the dough, the plants grow naturally and the treatment is water based. After harvesting flax to make all kinds of fabrics, flax is left in the field for a while to collapse the outer surface, enriching the soil and facilitating fiber removal at the same time. Owing to this, such innovations like Amplitex can stand as a potential substitute for carbon prepreg and hamper its market growth.

Some of the recent applications Amplitex are as follows :

• In February 2021 The Polestar concept car was unveiled in all interior panels of the car made with the Amplitex.
• In September 2020 Porsche AG Motorsport's new Cayman 718 GT4 CS MR was unveiled at the Nürburgring 24-hour race with a complete Amplitex body kit with power ribs.

Which Region is projected to offer the Largest Carbon Prepreg Market Opportunity?

During the projection period, Europe is expected to be the largest Carbon Prepreg Market. Various factors that are responsible for it include the high spending cost of European countries. Some of the key players in the European carbon prepreg market include Celanese Co., Ltd., Grit Holding AG, Hexel Co., Ltd., Kaman Co., Ltd., Park Aerospace Co., Ltd., SGL Carbon SE, Solvay SA, Toray Co., Ltd.

Country-wise Analysis

Which Country Lies at the Centerstage for Carbon Prepreg Market Revenue?

The United States is expected to account for the highest market of US$ 4.0 Bn by the end of 2032. It is expected to be projected to have an Absolute Dollar Growth of US$ 2.7 Bn. This is due to several factors such as an increase in the usage of carbon fibre in automotive. One of the recent examples for it is General Motor’s collaboration with Teijin, a Japan-based chemical, information technology and pharmaceutical company. General Motor with this collaboration claims to make the world’s first automotive with carbon fibre reinforced thermoplastic.

The country's high-value utility for carbon prepreg is also supported by US government policy which are mentioned in U.S. Strategic Material Assessment for Carbon Fiber Composites Policy document. This policy focuses primarily on the use of carbon prepreg in the Air Force, Navy, NASA, Marine Corps, Missile Defense Agency, Ministry of Energy, and other sectors.

Category-wise Insights

Why Epoxy Resin is projected to Witness Fastest Growth among Carbon Prepreg Product Types?

Epoxy resins are a popular choice for structural compounds since they offer a unique combination of chemical and mechanical qualities, as well as a wide range of sophisticated processing options. Epoxy processing costs are high for a variety of end-use systems. That makes them very expensive. However, due to its strong molecular binding, chemical resistance, and resistance to UV and chemical attacks, epoxies are extremely durable.

Carbon fiber reinforced epoxy resin is mainly used in the aerospace, defense and automotive industries. It is also preferred by automakers because it has a shorter cure time than other thermosetting resins. These advantages make it a better option than other resin types and hence, it is better than Phenolic, Bismaleimide, Thermoplastic and other resins.

Which Application of Carbon Prepreg is expected to be Most Lucrative?

Aerospace and Defence industry is the largest consumer industry for carbon prepreg, which accounted for 24,500 metric tonnes of usage globally in the year 2020. Demand growth of carbon prepreg through aerospace and defence industry was recorded at 9.6% during 2017 – 2021, while it is expected to grow at CAGR of 12.7% during 2022 - 2023. Aerospace engineering is a complex task and requires the use of lightweight materials without compromising on strength. Prepreg is used to quickly manufacture lightweight, powerful and safe aerospace components for passenger safety. Prepreg composites are an excellent alternative to metal aerospace components in aerospace engineering.

After aerospace and defence, carbon prepreg revenue is followed by Sports and leisure segment which accounted for 13,800 metric tonnes usage of carbon Prepreg globally in 2020. The main cause of usage of carbon prepreg is its high tensile strength and its lower weight ratio. Hence, carbon prepreg are used in making tennis rackets, cycles, golf sticks, skis and snowboards, among others.

What was the impact of Covid-19 on Carbon Prepreg Market?

After the economic recovery from Covid-19 pandemic, the demand for Carbon Prepreg increased drastically. During the lockdown automotive, aerospace, Sportswear companies and other companies were shut which caused a huge impact on the carbon prepreg industry.

In an Online Carbon Fiber GO Conference conducted by the innovation in Textile firm, Joint managing Director of Hofheimam Taunus, a Germany based Carbconsult, Dan Pichler said certain markets for materials have been hit hard. For commercial aviation, for example, international air travel was less than 10% in mid-to-late 2020 and is unlikely to return to pre-Covid-19 levels by at least 2024. Therefore, the construction of passenger planes is a little deadlocked.

The CFRP-heavy A350 manufactured by Airbus SE was manufactured 12 times a month compared with the scenario before the pandemic. Production of the 787 Dreamliner which is manufactured by Boeing, American Airlines dropped from 14 to 6 in a month. The aerospace industry used more than 20 Kilotons of carbon fiber annually in 2019, however it only used about 14 Kilotons in 2021.

It was mentioned in the Online Carbon Fiber GO Conference that car production is also disrupted by epidemic in the car market. For example, lightweight automotive production in Europe fell by 20% in 2020 as compared to 2019 and by 15% in the United States. Although the automotive industry is already booming, the use of CFRP is still in its infancy, limited to high material costs, except for some important, high quality and efficient vehicles, and is now economical.

The wind energy industry, on the other hand, was less affected by the Covid-19 epidemic. Between 2015 and 2018, 50,000 MW of new capacity (approximately 27,000 new turbines) will be installed annually. This number has increased to 60,000 by 2019 and to 93,000 MW (about 30,000 new turbines) by 2020. Similarly, it was said that 2020 will be the "Christmas of July" in the sportswear industry by unemployed and homeless workers. Despite these benefits, carbon prepreg demand is expected to rebound in the years to come.

Competitive Analysis

Players in the market are constantly developing improved analytical solutions as well as extending their product offerings. The companies in Carbon Prepreg market are focused on their alliances, technology collaborations, and product launch strategies. The Tier 2 Players in the market are targeting to increase their Carbon Prepreg market share.

Some of the recent developments in the Carbon Prepreg market are :

• In February 2020 World first bike with carbon fibre frame, subframe, swingarms and rims was launched by Ducati motor holding S.p.A, named as Ducati Superleggera V4.
• In May 2019, General Motors collaborated with Japan based company Teijin for producing world’s first application of carbon fibre reinforced thermoplastic (CFRTP) in its high production vehicle. The CFRTP material is been used for the boot bed of GM’s Premium offering GMC Sierra Denial 1500 and GMC Sierra AT4 1500 pickup.

Market Segmentation

• By Resin Type :

  • Epoxy
  • Phenolic
  • Bismaleidmide
  • Thermoplastics

• By Application :

  • Aerospace & Defence
  • Sports & Leisure
  • Automotive
  • Wind
  • Other Applications

• By Region :

  • North America
  • Latin America
  • Europe
  • APAC
  • MEA