Global warming, depletion and destruction of the ozone layer, reduction of biodiversity...With the pace of human development, global environmental issues are becoming increasingly severe, and environmental protection has become a common topic for the international community.With the proposal of the "dual carbon" target, promoting the green and low-carbon transformation of the economy and society has become a major systemic project, and enterprises will undoubtedly become the vanguard of global environmental governance. Adhering to the concept of "science first", Amp New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. has undertaken the construction of national key laboratories for fluorine greenhouse gas substitution and control treatment, as well as the national ODS substitute engineering technology research center and other national level innovation platforms.They have developed a new generation of green refrigerants, foaming agents, and other products, with the annual elimination of ODS accounting for about 10% globally and contributing to a reduction of 460 million tons of CO2 equivalent, equivalent to the average annual absorption of CO2 by 40 billion trees. This is the low-carbon vision that China Blue Sky is painting. On World Environment Day on June 5th, at the media open day event held by China Blue Sky, we understood the original intention of a fluorine chemical enterprise to "protect the blue sky" for 72 years and the beautiful belief of promoting world high-quality development through technological innovation. Amp New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. is truly a "sky protector".As early as 1999, the Zhejiang Chemical Research Institute under Amp New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. was approved to establish the only "National ODS Substitute Engineering Technology Research Center" in China, being the first research institution in the country to engage in ODS replacement research. Today, the center has developed a large number of influential ODS substitute varieties and technologies, winning awards such as the "Ozone Layer Protection Contribution Award" from the National Environmental Protection Bureau, making significant contributions to China's compliance with the Montreal Protocol and product upgrades. Currently, the national key laboratory for fluorine greenhouse gas substitution and control treatment has achieved a series of innovative results in the development of fluorine greenhouse gas substitutes, green process development, and fluorine gas capture and conversion, providing strong technical support for reducing emissions at the source, process control, and end-of-pipe treatment of fluorine greenhouse gases. During the open day, journalists experienced a magical "water" where a tablet computer could function normally when submerged in it, and a light bulb could be powered on safely when placed in it. Researcher Wang Fei explained that this was the "miraculous fire extinguishing agent" called perfluorohexanone, developed by the company's national key laboratory. This fire extinguishing agent has excellent insulation, compatibility, and efficiency, but most notably, its environmental friendliness. Perfluorohexanone is currently one of the ideal replacements for halon, with an ODP value of 0 and a GWP value of only 1, compared to the GWP value of 3500 for the currently used fire extinguishing agent, heptafluoropropane. This means that for the same fire extinguishing effect, the greenhouse gas emissions released into the atmosphere are only 1/3500 of the original amount! With an atmospheric residence time of 5 days, it is truly a green and environmentally friendly fire extinguishing agent.

China National Chemical Corporation (ChemChina) has been deeply involved in the fluorine industry for over 70 years, with products applied in refrigeration, safety, electronics, construction, medicine, pesticides, new energy, environmental protection, and other fields, making it "omnipresent and omnipotent."Get on board first! Meet "Fluorine"1. In the summer, cool driving relies on it On a hot summer day, the first thing you think about when getting in the car is turning on the air conditioning!The moment you turn on the air conditioning, the refrigerant, known as the "blood" of the air conditioning system, starts serving you – it absorbs heat through vaporization, lowering the temperature inside the car. In the field of refrigerants, ChemChina's subsidiary, BlueStar (Beijing) Chemical Machinery Co., Ltd., is a strong player with a full range of refrigerant products in various specifications. BlueStar's Zhejiang Research Institute started focusing on the development of ozone-depleting substance (ODS) alternatives in the 1980s, with multiple refrigerant projects included in national, ministerial, and provincial research plans. In the 1990s, Amp New Energy Technology Co., Ltd.'s HFC-134a (tetrafluoroethane) project was listed as a key scientific and technological project in the national "Eighth Five-Year Plan," filling a technological gap in China. Currently, most of the refrigerants used in cars on the market are HFC-134a. Additionally, Amp New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. is also the drafting unit for the Chinese national standard for HFC-134a. Amp New Energy Technology Co., Ltd.'s nearly ten varieties are popular in both domestic and global markets, with the "Jinleng®" automotive air conditioning refrigerant holding a leading position in the market. In the field of new energy vehicles, BlueStar is researching DL series refrigerants and YL series electronic fluorine liquids for use in the thermal management system of new energy vehicles, achieving constant temperature control for the car cabin and batteries.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the range of new energy vehicles was only 40 kilometers. Today, many new energy vehicles can travel over 700 kilometers on a single charge, thanks to the revolution in battery technology, which has driven rapid industrial development. Today, we will decrypt the "code" behind the range of new energy vehicles and understand the core functional material behind it, PVDF lithium battery binder.Decrypting the low-key hero in lithium batteries - lithium battery binder The lithium battery we are familiar with mainly consists of electrodes (positive and negative electrodes), electrolytes, and separators. During the charging and discharging process of the battery, lithium ions (Li+) are repeatedly inserted and extracted between the positive and negative electrodes, while electrons form a current through an external circuit.Where is the lithium battery binder? ☟ The lithium battery binder is "stuck" on the positive electrode sheet ☟Why is a binder needed? This is because the electrode is composed of a metal electrode sheet and electrode material attached to it, and there is no adhesive force inside the electrode material or between the electrode material and the metal electrode sheet. The binder is needed for "bonding" to maintain the integrity of the electrode structure. How important is the lithium battery binder? The lithium battery binder is an indispensable component in lithium batteries. Although it accounts for a small proportion, it is the main source of the overall mechanical performance of the electrode, and it has a significant impact on the production process of the electrode and the electrochemical performance of the battery.The main functions of lithium battery binders: ▶▶ Bonding active materials, conductive agents, and current collectors to maintain electrode structure integrity ▶▶ Acting as a dispersant or thickener to improve the uniformity of electrode components In summary, lithium battery binders, which account for only about 1% of the total cost of lithium batteries, play a significant role in the core performance of batteries such as cycle life, charge-discharge capacity, rate capability, and so on.Why choose PVDF as the lithium battery binder? Lithium battery binders not only carry so many responsibilities, but also need to work stably in extremely harsh environments for a long time. In daily life, the adhesives we use are mostly hydrocarbon polymers, which have the advantages of low cost, quick drying, and strong bonding strength. For example, pressure-sensitive adhesive (acrylic resin) and super glue (alpha-cyanoacrylate) are commonly used. However, the internal environment of lithium batteries is harsh. The binders and electrode materials are constantly immersed in the electrolyte, subjected to various electrochemical reactions, and required to maintain long-term stability within the working voltage range of the electrodes. Ordinary hydrocarbon "glues" are either dissolved in the electrolyte or oxidized by the electrochemical environment. The task of bonding lithium batteries is not something that general adhesives can handle. This is where PVDF comes in. PVDF (polyvinylidene fluoride) is a special fluorinated olefin polymer. Compared to the "king" of olefin polymers polyethylene, half of the hydrogen atoms in PVDF are replaced by fluorine atoms, forming carbon-fluorine bonds instead of carbon-hydrogen bonds in polyethylene. These bonds have a high energy, are very strong and difficult to break, making PVDF much more stable than general hydrocarbon polymers. In addition, because fluorine atoms have strong electronegativity, PVDF is highly polar and can dissolve in some strong polar solvents such as amides, forming a flow system of electrode materials, binders, and solvents for coating on electrode sheets. Witness the Four Winning Moves of PVDF #"Stable" PVDF has good chemical stability, is acid-resistant and oxidation-reduction-resistant, will not be dissolved by the electrolyte, will not be oxidized under high voltage conditions, and will not react or deteriorate during storage and cycling. #"Bonding" If the bonding strength of the binder is insufficient, the electrode material may detach from the electrode sheet after multiple charge-discharge cycles, rendering the battery unable to store energy and leading to the entire battery being scrapped. Compared to tetrafluorine binders, PVDF has both carbon-fluorine bonds and carbon-hydrogen bonds, forming hydrogen bonds with the oxygen elements on the positive electrode to firmly adhere the positive electrode particles. #"Flexible" PVDF has enough flexibility to ensure that the active materials do not detach during repeated expansion and contraction, and the binding between electrode particles is not destroyed. #"Dissolve" PVDF lithium battery binders have good solubility, fast dissolution speed, and high solubility. After PVDF is dissolved into a solution, it can be evenly dispersed into the positive electrode material and the surface of the electrode sheet, effectively bonding the active materials uniformly to the current collector.Amp New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. What's the big difference in PVDF lithium battery binderInnovation-driven, high-end products achieve domestic substitution Amp New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. has been deeply involved in fluorine chemical industry for more than 70 years, with more than 40 years of deep accumulation in the field of PVDF research and production technology, and has presided over and participated in many scientific and technological research projects. Since 2009, Amp New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. has started to develop PVDF products specifically for lithium battery binders, successively developing 5 grades of PVDF products including emulsion, suspension, and modified types, and has accumulated a number of leading technologies and "Know-How" in VDF monomer synthesis, PVDF polymerization process formulation, and resin scale production. It has many "unique skills" in areas such as fluoropolymer quasi-steady-state polymerization, constant ratio copolymer modification, and condensed phase structure analysis. Innovative mechanism, efficient operation of "research, production, sales, and inspection"Amp New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. has a complete set of small-scale, medium-scale, and industrialization supporting facilities, and integrates product development, performance evaluation, application research, production, and sales in one. The project team focuses on product design and process manufacturing, with customer application requirements as the guide, and creates sustainable innovation capabilities. At the beginning of 2021, the domestic new energy electric vehicle industry ushered in an explosive growth market situation, and the demand for PVDF from lithium battery manufacturers quickly increased. The project team took rapid action, conducted targeted product small-scale experiments to prepare samples, and achieved the formalization of a new green and high-performance emulsion method PVDF grade in just 3 months; and overcame the scalability issues of synthetic process amplification. While optimizing experiments and saving production costs, the new product was efficiently scaled up for production, successfully integrating the product into the supply chain system of leading enterprises in the lithium battery industry. At the same time, Amp New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. is also one of the few PVDF manufacturers in China that provide evaluation laboratories for lithium battery applications. The application evaluation laboratory has the ability to evaluate most of the downstream lithium battery customer trial lines, test indicators such as solid content, stability, rheological properties of lithium battery slurry containing PVDF, and coat them into electrode sheets to evaluate the relevant performance of the electrode sheets. It is equivalent to moving some of the evaluation capabilities of lithium battery customers into the laboratory, greatly reducing the distance between products and applications, and achieving efficient connection with the market.

Recently, the Zhejiang Provincial People's Government issued a decision to commend the winners of the 1st Zhejiang Province Intellectual Property Award, announcing the list of winners. The core invention patent of Zhuhai Blue Sky Polyvinylidene Fluoride (PVDF) product, "High Adhesive Polyvinylidene Fluoride Copolymer," was awarded the first prize for invention patents."High Adhesive Polyvinylidene Fluoride Copolymer" addresses the long-term reliance on imported high-performance PVDF binders for lithium batteries and the foreign monopoly on intellectual property. We independently developed a new type of PVDF copolymer, with better adhesion and alkali resistance than foreign competitors. This has led to integrated technological innovation in polymerization, processing, application, and industrialization. Expert reviews have confirmed that the technology has reached international leading levels. This intellectual property achievement has been successfully implemented and mass-produced on a thousand-ton production line, supplying global lithium battery giants. The product has been adopted by the top 20 companies in the lithium battery industry, creating significant social and economic benefits and effectively promoting the technological progress of China's fluorine chemical industry.The Zhejiang Province Intellectual Property Award is the first provincial government comprehensive intellectual property award established nationwide. It is the only provincial government award in the field of intellectual property that covers all categories of intellectual property and the entire chain of "creation, operation, and protection." The evaluation is organized by the Zhejiang Market Supervision Administration (Zhejiang Intellectual Property Office).

Conductive carbon black is a type of conductive agent and an important auxiliary material in lithium batteries.Compared to other conductive agents, conductive carbon black has better overall performance and is currently the mainstream conductive agent. Benefiting from the continuous growth in demand for downstream new energy vehicles, we expect the global market space for conductive carbon black to be around 7.6 billion yuan by 2027. In terms of production process, the main barrier for conductive carbon black lies in the design of reaction furnace equipment. In terms of production cost, the main cost components of this product include raw materials such as coal tar. In terms of market landscape, this product has mainly relied on imports in the past, but is currently accelerating domestic substitution. Domestic companies mainly include Black Cat Corporation, Jiaozuo Hexiong, Yongdong Corporation, and Wuxi Dongheng. Looking at future trends, conductive carbon black is suitable for the trend of composite conductive agents. Conductive carbon black is the mainstream lithium battery conductive agent, with core technology creating barriers Conductive agents are important auxiliary materials for improving the conductivity of lithium batteries, which can compensate for the poor conductivity of positive electrode materials and maintain the conductivity performance of negative electrode materials after repeated expansion and contraction. Conductive carbon black performs well when considering factors such as the degree of improvement in electrode conductivity, slurry dispersion performance, formulation dosage, and cost. According to GGII data, conductive carbon black accounted for 65% of China's power battery conductive agents in 2022. The performance of conductive carbon black is mainly determined by its structural characteristics, specific surface area, and magnetic impurity content. The performance requirements for lithium-grade conductive carbon black are higher than for ordinary carbon black, and the product performance can be classified from low to high as acetylene black, SP, and Ketjen black. The reaction furnace is an important reaction equipment and a core barrier for the production of conductive carbon black, with components such as the oil nozzle in the furnace head being crucial for accuracy. Localization and cost reduction are the trend, with potential for small and beautiful new energy tracks In terms of cost composition, raw materials such as coal tar account for approximately 80% of the cost of conductive carbon black. The price of imported conductive carbon black has long been high, with shipping costs accounting for a certain proportion.Domestic substitution can eliminate shipping costs, while domestic raw material costs are lower than overseas costs, making it cost-effective. Assuming that the proportions of conductive carbon black added to ternary positive electrode materials, lithium iron phosphate and other positive electrode materials, and negative electrode materials are 2%, 3%, and 1% respectively, and the penetration rates of conductive carbon black from 2023 to 2027 are 56%, 54%, 52%, 51%, and 50%, the global market demand for conductive carbon black from 2023 to 2027 is estimated to be 48,000 tons, 66,000 tons, 89,000 tons, 118,000 tons, and 152,000 tons, corresponding to market spaces of 3.14 billion yuan, 3.94 billion yuan, 4.87 billion yuan, 6.15 billion yuan, and 7.60 billion yuan. Domestic substitution is underway, with efforts to promote expansion In the past, due to the dispersed scale of domestic carbon black companies and their focus on the tire market, as well as insufficient core research and development technology for reaction furnaces, domestic conductive carbon black was almost entirely dependent on imports. Major companies included France's Orion Stone, the United States' Cabot Corporation, Japan's Lion King, and Japan's Denka Corporation. With the accelerated penetration of downstream new energy vehicles and the significant increase in demand for lithium batteries, overseas supply of conductive carbon black has been unable to meet demand and prices have been high. Domestic companies have begun to initiate domestic production, gradually achieving technological breakthroughs. Major companies include Black Cat Corporation, Jiaozuo Hexiong, Yongdong Corporation, and Wuxi Dongheng.Risk warning: Lower-than-expected sales of downstream new energy vehicles, slower-than-expected industrialization progress, technological innovations, and the mention of companies in the industry chain do not represent coverage or investment recommendations for the company.

Amp New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. was established in July 2001 as Jiangxi Black Cat Carbon Black Co., Ltd., focusing on the development of carbon black as a resource utilization product in the context of diversified development. The company went public on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange in September 2006, becoming the first company in China to be listed with a single carbon black product through market operations with state-owned assets holding. Over the past twenty years, the company has grown into a leading enterprise in the chemical industry specializing in carbon black products, with coal tar deep processing and white carbon black as its two wings, and resource utilization as a supplement. The company currently has carbon black production bases in Jingdezhen, Hancheng, Chaoyang, Wuhai, Handan, Taiyuan, Tangshan, and Jining (some with supporting coal tar deep processing capacity), as well as a carbon-based materials research institute in Qingdao and a special carbon black post-processing base in Hefei. It is a leading enterprise in the domestic carbon black industry with outstanding production capacity, reasonable production layout, and a high level of comprehensive utilization.Since its establishment in 2001, the company has been dedicated to the manufacturing and research of carbon black products, with carbon black sales revenue accounting for over 85% of the company's total business income. It is a leading enterprise in the Chinese carbon black industry, the Chairman unit of the Carbon Black Branch of China Rubber Industry Association, the first listed company in China with carbon black as its main business, and has been the top producer and seller of carbon black in China for over 10 consecutive years. The company's carbon black production technology and processes are at an international advanced level, making it a leader in energy efficiency in the Chinese carbon black industry. The carbon black products produced by Amp New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. are exported to over 20 countries and regions in Europe, America, and Japan, transforming from an unknown carbon black small factory at its inception to a globally renowned carbon black enterprise ranking fourth in market share. Carbontech is honored to have Mr. He Zonglin, technical consultant of Amp New Energy Technology Co., Ltd., to share the development trajectory of Black Cat Carbon Black, their future research plans, and analyze the pros and cons of conductive carbon black, graphene, and carbon nanotubes in the field of battery conductive agents.