The global demand for chelating agents that are used in detergents and cleaners to lower water hardness, is set to rise to more than 4.34 million tonnes by 2022, according to market research institute Ceresana.

Chelating agents are useful and at times controversial chemicals that are used in large quantities, said a report.

The most important sales market for chelating agents are washing powders. It constituted about 60 per cent of total demand last year, it said.

Chelating agents are not only used in household detergents and cleaners, but also in industrial applications. It is applied, among others, in the pulp and paper industry, textiles and leather, the food industry, medicine and cosmetics.

The pulp industry was the largest consumer last year with a volume of about 150.000 tonnes. In this sector, chelating agents are used for manufacturing bleached chemical pulp and for de-inking recycled waste paper.

While demand for chelating agents is rising strongly in emerging countries, saturated markets in Western Europe and North America will only grow slightly over the next years. They are characterised by product substitution.

Environmental concerns are having an impact on the use of the controversial sodium tripolyphosphate (STPP) in the European Union as well as in Canada and the US. Many manufacturers are voluntarily refraining from applying STPP. Governmental prohibitions and limitations are becoming more and more effective as well.

In Europe, demand for STPP in household washing powders has already fallen significantly. Over the next years, this trend is expected to lead to a clear volume decline of STPP for dishwashing detergents.

Meanwhile, there is an increasing desire for replacing conventional chelating agents such as STPP, phosphonates, EDTA, NTA or DTPA in an environmentally friendly way, said the report.

Biodegradability is most important in order to prevent long-term consequences for humans and the environment. Citric acid, GLDA, MGDA, EDDS, IDS, gluconic acid, and glucoheptonates are to be more environmentally friendly. Ceresana expects its demand to rise by 2.4 per cent per annum worldwide, it said.


The study has provided a presentation and analysis of the global market for chelating agents; examined the market for chelating agents; analysed demand for individual types of chelating agents; and provided profiles of the largest producers of chelating agents. - TradeArabia News Service