The combination of wood and plastic is not new. The United States started wood-plastic composite extrusion decades ago, and it has developed particularly rapidly in the past five years. Since the 1990s, many countries in North America and Europe have conducted a lot of research on wood-plastic composite materials, and their production and application are also increasing rapidly.
The consumption of wood-plastic composite materials in North America and Europe reached 680,000 tons in 2002 , and is expected to grow by 14% and 19% by 2010. North America is currently the largest region in the world's wood-plastic composite market. According to a special report by the US Pricipia Parlners consulting company, the consumption in the North American market alone reached 320,000 tons in 2001. Wainscoting, ceilings, decorative panels, tread boards, wall panels, highway noise barriers, building templates, moisture-proof panels, decorative borders, fences and garden handrails, packaging pads, outdoor tables and chairs, ship cabin partitions , office partitions, etc., as well as the demand for laminated boards, blinds, etc. under development are growing rapidly.
The United States is at the forefront of the production, development and application of wood-plastic composite materials. Its largest product is decking, and the production process is extrusion molding. In the production and manufacturing of windows, door panels, slats, and furniture in Europe, the application of wood-plastic composite materials has been growing.
Today, the development and growth of wood-plastic composites in Europe is strong. Europe leads the world in natural fiber-filled plastics for the automotive industry, but Germany lags behind the United States and Japan in wood-filling materials. Therefore, there is room for rapid growth in this field.
Development Trend of Wood-Plastic Composite Materials
With the continuous development of wood-plastic material technology, its development trend may make breakthroughs in the following aspects:
(1) The selection of raw materials is developing in a wide range. After cleaning the recycled single-component waste plastics (PE, PP, PVC, ABS, etc.) and adding specific modifiers, wood-plastic products can be processed and manufactured;
(2) Develop special equipment, and the processing methods will develop from single screw extrusion to other traditional plastic processing, from water-cooling molding to air-cooling molding, and from single extrusion profiles to composite co-extrusion and wrapped co-extrusion;
(3) Innovate the processing technology, introduce foaming technology, and develop from high foam to low foam and micro foam;
(4) Products develop from low value-added (such as wood-plastic pallets, storage floors) to high-end products to further improve quality and efficiency.
