Prices vary greatly

According to the statistics of "Development and Application of Non metallic Mines", from January to December 2016, the total export volume and amount of kaolin in China were 1247254.71 tons and 106.1709 million US dollars, respectively. During the same period, the total amount and amount of imported kaolin in China were 431871.64 tons and 99.3075 million US dollars, respectively. On average, the price of domestically produced kaolin in 2016 was about 85 US dollars per ton, while the price of imported kaolin was about 230 US dollars per ton. The price of imported kaolin was nearly twice that of domestically produced kaolin.

According to data from the China Academy of Commerce and Industry, the national export volume of kaolin in 2017 was 1155709.7 tons, with an export amount of 114.9598 million US dollars. In 2017, the national import volume of kaolin was 533702.5t, with an import amount of 119596000 US dollars. On average, the price of domestically produced kaolin in 2017 was about $99/t, while the price of imported kaolin was about $224/t. The price of imported products is still much higher than that of domestically produced kaolin.

Significant differences in consumption structure

The consumption structure of kaolin in China differs significantly from the average level of countries such as the United States. Domestic kaolin is mainly consumed in the ceramic field, accounting for 55%, while the average consumption proportion in the ceramic field in countries such as the United States is about 15%. Compared to the low-end ceramic industry, in the papermaking industry, high-end domestic kaolin products account for a significantly smaller proportion of consumption, about 30%, while the average level in countries such as the United States is above 45%. The kaolin used in domestic papermaking mainly relies on high-quality and high priced imported products.

One reason for this is that the grade of kaolin resources in China is relatively low. Although the reserves are relatively large, most of them can only be applied to low-end ceramic fields or fillers. Furthermore, there is a significant gap in the processing technology and equipment of kaolin in China compared to other countries. Although various types of ultrafine crushing equipment have been developed in China, there is still a significant gap in terms of structure, material, processing precision, stability, and efficiency compared to advanced foreign equipment.

New products and new application fields are vastly different

In addition to having more low-end products, there are also significant differences in the development of new products and new application fields between China and countries such as the United States in the domestic kaolin industry structure. Although China has done a lot of research work, such as calcining kaolin products, synthesizing 0.4 nm molecular sieves, and developing high-temperature special ceramics, many of these products are still in the laboratory stage, and there is still some distance from industrialization. Relatively speaking, foreign products and application fields involve many aspects, including ceramic building materials, chemicals, environmental protection, textiles, atomic reactors, jet aircraft and other high-temperature refractory material industries.

Industrial concentration and scale vary greatly

According to the relevant person in charge of the China Nonmetallic Mining Association, the annual production of kaolin in China is approximately 7 million tons. Compared with international standards, the concentration of China's kaolin industry is relatively low, and the scale of enterprises is generally small. At present, most domestic kaolin production companies have a production capacity of several hundred thousand tons, while major international kaolin production companies such as Imerya in France have a production capacity of about 5.9 million tons; The production capacity of Engelhard, Huber, and Tbiele in the United States is approximately 1.8 million tons, 1.4 million tons, and 1.2 million tons respectively; The production capacity of Cadam in Brazil is approximately 1 million tons.

Product performance requirements vary greatly

Taking the main performance indicators of high whiteness ultra-fine kaolin produced by American kaolin production companies as an example, compared with the performance requirements of fine kaolin for special rubber and plastic coatings in China (referring to JC/T 2370-2016 Fine Kaolin), it can be seen that the particle size of American kaolin is -2 μ The requirement for m is above 96%, while the domestic requirement is above 85%; The requirement for the 325 mesh sieve residue of kaolin in the United States is not higher than 0.5%, and the requirement for domestic kaolin is not higher than 1%; The spherical ratio requirement for kaolin in the United States is 4.2, while there is currently no such requirement in China.