Development Status of UHMWPE Fiber at Home and Abroad

Release time:

2023-07-11

Ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fiber, also known as high strength and high modulus polyethylene fiber, is the fiber with the highest specific strength and modulus in the world. It is the third generation of high-performance fiber after carbon fiber and aramid fiber. It is mainly used in safety protection, aerospace, marine engineering, textile and clothing, construction and other fields, and is an important strategic high-performance material related to national security and economic development.

In 2017, DSM (DSM) expanded the research and development scale of Dyneema (a kind of UHMWPE fiber) bulletproof material specially used for bulletproof helmets. In 2020, Italian Moncler company will use Dyneema composite fabric to prepare high-performance and high-function ski clothing, realizing the integration of high-strength, durability and beautiful design. In Honeywell 2020, Honeywell launched the newly developed Spectra Shield 6000 series, dedicated to high-performance ballistic and lightweight protective materials.

In 2021, the Dutch DSM Protective Materials Company and Luxembourg Clean Technology Company Clariter Company issued a strategic cooperation agreement to jointly develop a new generation of chemical regeneration technology for Dyneema products. In the first stage, the feasibility of regenerating samples of Dyneema ropes, nets and bulletproof materials was verified in the Clariter pilot plant in Poland. In the second stage, bio-based Dyneema were successfully listed, while DSM Protective Materials Company actively pursued the regeneration and reuse solutions of Dyneema-based final products and carried out feasibility evaluation. In the third stage, the Dyneema of final products was realized through chemical regeneration engineering, technical feasibility of conversion into high value-added industrial product groups (oils, paraffins, solvents, etc.). Building on the success of the laboratory, Clariter plans to launch a commercial-scale trial run in South Africa, with a future production facility in Europe.

The Ecole Militaire Polytechnique of the University of Algeria cooperated with Harbin Institute of Technology in China to jointly develop bisphenol A epoxy resin reinforced with oxidized UHMWPE fiber to produce high-performance resin-based hybrid materials. Adding various doses of modified nano-silicon nitride powder (Si3N4), the vibration and morphological analysis can confirm the effectiveness of the grafting research method.

UHMWPE fiber is currently the largest output (about 21300 t in 2020) and the least import (about 354t) of high-performance organic fibers in China, with a total of more than 20 production plants. Among them, Jiangsu Qiang nima new materials co., ltd has 16 UHMWPE fiber production lines with a production capacity of 2500 t/a, several high-strength anti-cutting coating yarn production lines and a "high-strength fiber engineering technology research center". Jiangsu Jiujiu Technology Co., Ltd. is a leading enterprise in the industry, with a high level of automation control and a planned production capacity of 10000 t/a; in 2021, Jiangsu Shenhe developed a new variety of ultra-high-strength high-mold, low-creep, heat-resistant, and its indicators are said to exceed DSM's level. Other new varieties being developed, such as: Beijing Fuwei New Material Technology Co., Ltd. invented the use of UHMWPE powder, photosensitizer, crosslinking agent, silane coupling agent and solvent mixing, and effective control of macromolecular crosslinking area and crosslinking point density, dry or wet gel spinning process to produce UHMWPE fibers, can also be added to the spinning raw material fluorine-containing polymer, spinning can be produced after high-modulus creep-resistant fibers; the Shangyu Institute of Industrial Technology of Zhejiang Sci-Tech University uses UHMWPE with a weight average molecular weight of 3 million -6 million, inorganic nano-fillers and white oil as raw materials to produce fibers with extremely high strength and modulus, excellent mechanical properties and resistance to cracking after gel spinning.

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