On September 11, 2025, reported from Shandong
In July 2025, the world's first 10000 ton bio based silicone rubber production line was officially put into operation in Shandong, marking the complete liberation of the silicone industry from dependence on petroleum raw materials and entering the era of "green reconstruction". This breakthrough not only solves the problem of excessive dependence on fossil resources in traditional silicone rubber production, but also significantly reduces carbon emissions through the application of bio based raw materials, setting a sustainable development benchmark for the global silicone industry.
Technological breakthrough: The cost of producing silane from rice husks is approaching the petroleum based route
This production line adopts the rice husk to high activity silane technology developed by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and achieves green preparation of silane through biomass resource conversion. Compared with traditional petroleum based routes, this technology not only reduces carbon dioxide emissions, but also compresses production costs to near current levels. According to the project leader, the silicon dioxide in rice husks can be efficiently converted into high-purity silane after special processing, with a purity of 99.99%, fully meeting the production needs of high-end silicone rubber.
In addition, the physical properties of bio based silicone rubber are comparable to petroleum based products, and even perform better in indicators such as high temperature resistance and aging resistance. For example, in the field of photovoltaic packaging, the transmittance of bio based silicone rubber has been increased to 92%, which is 5 percentage points higher than traditional materials and can significantly improve the power generation efficiency of photovoltaic modules. At present, the production line has been certified by international authoritative institutions, and the products have entered the global supply chain system.
Industrial impact: forcing industry technological upgrading and resource restructuring
The launch of the Shandong Biobased Silicone Rubber project has triggered a chain reaction in the global organic silicon industry chain. On the one hand, traditional petroleum based silicone rubber production enterprises are facing dual pressures of cost and environmental protection, accelerating their transition to bio based technology; On the other hand, biomass raw material suppliers are facing new opportunities, and the prices of agricultural waste such as rice husks and straw are skyrocketing. According to estimates, the purchase price of rice husks per ton has increased from 200 yuan to 400 yuan, driving farmers to increase their income by over 30%.
At the same time, the EU's "carbon footprint tracing" investigation into Chinese photovoltaic adhesive products further highlights the importance of green technology. The new regulations require that the carbon emissions of photovoltaic modules throughout their entire lifecycle must be below a specific threshold, otherwise high tariffs will be imposed. The promotion and application of bio based silicone rubber provide key technical support for Chinese photovoltaic enterprises to cope with trade barriers.
Future outlook: By 2028, the proportion of biobased materials will exceed 30%
According to industry planning, by 2028, the global market share of bio based organic silicon materials will exceed 30%, with a compound annual growth rate of 25%. At present, several leading companies have laid out the bio based track. For example, a certain enterprise is developing a sugarcane based methanol project and collaborating with Brazilian sugar giants to build an integrated industrial chain of "sugarcane methanol silane", completely breaking the curse of "methanol metal silicon" price linkage.
Industry experts point out that the popularization of bio based technology will reshape the competitive landscape of the organic silicon industry. In the next three years, technological barriers, raw material supply, and carbon footprint certification will become the core elements of enterprise competition.
