Concentrated Nitric Acid Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The Global Concentrated Nitric Acid Market is projected to register a CAGR of over 3% during the forecast period (2021-2026).

The market was negatively impacted by COVID-19 in 2020. Owing to the pandemic scenario, the mining and automotive manufacturing activities were on temporary halt during the government-imposed lockdown, thus leading to a decrease in consumption of concentrated nitric acid used in the manufacturing of automobile interior products and mining explosive materials, negatively impacting the market demand. However, nitric oxide, a compound produced by the reduction of nitric acid with copper, is used to treat pulmonary hypertension, and acute respiratory distress syndrome has grown in demand as it has the potential to treat COVID-19 patients, thereby enhancing the demand for the market studied.

Key Highlights

• Over the short term, the growing demand for concentrated nitric acid from the ammonium nitrate segment in applications, including fertilizer and mining explosives production, is expected to drive the market's growth.
• However, the toxicity of concentrated nitric acid is likely to hinder the growth of the studied market.
• The technological and scientific advancement in mono and dual-pressure technology for the production of nitric acid designed to cope with the latest environmental regulations and to maximize the amount of steam exported are likely to provide opportunities for the concentrated nitric acid market over the forecast period.
• Asia-Pacific dominated the market across the globe, with the largest consumption from countries such as China and India.

Key Market Trends

Ammonium Nitrate to Dominate the Market

• Ammonium nitrate stands to be the dominating segment owing to the extensive utilization of agricultural fertilizers, explosives, and aviation fuels.
• Ammonium nitrate is used as a fertilizer and can be used as an intermediate for making other fertilizers containing high amounts of nitrates such as calcium and urea ammonium nitrate.
• The rise in demand for fertilizers to cater to the ever-increasing requirement for food is fueling the ammonium nitrate segment. This, in turn, is propelling the concentrated nitric acid market.
• Ammonium nitrate is also used as an intermediate for explosives and agrochemicals. The explosives industry shares a noteworthy interest in items in the mining of coal and metals. Production of explosives uses ammonium nitrate, which requires a lot of nitric corrosive as an antecedent which legitimately impacts the interest for nitric corrosive. According to USGS, the total value of metal mine production in the United States was about USD 26.9 billion in 2019 and reached about USD 27.7 billion in 2020, with a growth rate of about 3%, leading to an increase in demand for explosives from the metal mining sector, which has stimulated the demand for the market studied.
• Furthermore, the coal production in the United States was valued at about USD 25.5 billion in 2019 and reached about USD 18.8 billion in 2020, with a decline rate of about 26%, thus led to a decrease in the consumption of explosives used during the mining, negatively impacting the market demand for ammonium nitrate and concentrated nitric acid.
• Ammonium nitrate is utilized in Ammonium Nitrate Fuel Oil (ANFO), which is widely used as bulk industrial explosives. Increasing demand for ANFO for manufacturing civil explosives is projected to drive the ammonium nitrate application segment during the forecast period.
• The market value of the global agrochemicals business is estimated to be USD 243.1 billion in 2019, and it is expected to increase to nearly USD 300 billion by 2024, which is expected to enhance the demand for concentrated nitric acid for formulating agrochemicals, including pesticides and others.
• Therefore, the aforementioned factors are expected to significantly impact the market in the coming years.

The Asia-Pacific Region to Dominate the Market

• The Asia-Pacific region stands to be the largest and fastest-growing market for concentrated nitric acid. The Asia-Pacific region is the industrial base with established manufacturing facilities of agrochemicals, fertilizers, explosives, polyurethane foams, etc.
• In FY2019, the primary sales volume for fertilizers in India amounted to about 57.8 million ton and reached about 61.4 million ton, with a growth rate of about 6%, leading to an increase in consumption of nitric acid from the fertilizer segment.
• Various industrial applications such as automotive, building and construction, and agrochemicals, are the prominent factors likely to boost the market in Asia-Pacific.
• Adipic acid is formulated by oxidation of the mixture of cyclohexanone and cyclohexanol with nitric acid, also known as ketone-alcohol oil (KA oil).
• In small amounts, adipic acid is used in food ingredients in the form of flavoring agents and can also be used in the production of nylons and polymers. An increase in the use of nylon and polyurethane is estimated to drive the demand for adipic acid. This, in turn, is likely to propel the concentrated nitric acid market during the forecast period.
• In the automotive industry, the trend of replacing metal parts with lightweight and strong materials, such as synthetic rubbers, nylon, and elastomers, drives the demand for nitrobenzene and adipic acid. Rising demand for synthetic rubbers, elastomers, and polyurethane foams in the automotive industry is anticipated to drive the product demand.
• Adipic acid is also used in the coatings used for the automotive exterior. The increasing use of flexible PU foams in automotive interiors and cushions drives the demand for TDI. These factors are estimated to fuel the demand for concentrated nitric acid during the forecast period.
• According to OICA, China had produced about 25.75 million vehicles in 2019 and reached about 25.23 million vehicles in 2020, with a decline rate of about 2%, leading to a decrease in consumption of concentrated nitric acid from the automotive segment, negatively impacting the market demand.
• Additionally, India had produced about 4.52 million vehicles in 2019 and reached about 3.39 million vehicles in 2020, with a decline rate of about 25%, hampering the market demand.
• Strong application in the chemicals industry, owing to its usage in the manufacturing of various polymers, including polyurethane and polyamides, is anticipated to drive the concentrated nitric acid market.
• Therefore, the aforementioned factors are expected to show a significant impact on the market in the coming years.

Competitive Landscape

The global concentrated nitric acid market is partially consolidated in nature, with a few major players dominating a significant portion of the market. Some key players include The Chemical Company, UBE INDUSTRIES LTD, CF Fertilisers UK, Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers & Chemicals Limited (GNFC), and LSB Industries.

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