USES

Ethyl acetate (etac) is used in coating formulations like epoxies, urethanes, cellulosics, acrylics and vinyls, and is also used in solvent applications for inks, pharmaceuticals, food, and herbicides. High-purity etac can be used as a viscosity reducer for resins.

SUPPLY/DEMAND

Etac in North America is supplied by five plants – four in the US are owned by Eastman Chemical and the fifth, in Mexico is owned by Celanese. According to US import data, the US received about 34,000 tonnes of etac from Mexico in 2016, about 25% of the plant’s annual capacity. As of June 2017, the US had received about 16,000 tonnes of etac from Mexico. However, Sasol’s 55,000 tonne/year plant in Secunda, South Africa is also a major supplier to the US market. US imports from South Africa in 2016 were 14,000 tonnes, also about 25% of the plant’s annual capacity. As of June 2017, the US had received about 5,000 tonnes of etac from South Africa. US etac imports from countries other than Mexico and South Africa in 2016 totalled about 6,000 tonnes, of which most came from Brazil, India and China. In the first six months of 2017, US etac imports from countries other than Mexico and South Africa totalled about 2,500 tonnes. The US exported about 30,000 tonnes of
etac in 2016 and 13,000 tonnes in the first six months of 2017, putting exports at about half the level of imports. Import levels in the first six months of 2017 had fallen by about 15% from the first six months of 2016, while export levels had fallen by about 18% over the same time period. More recently, US etac supply has been disrupted by multiple issues. In late August, Hurricane Harvey impacted the US Gulf coast and caused logistical issues and outages for upstream acetic acid. Both Celanese and Sasol had issued sales controls. In September, earthquakes in Mexico caused further logistical issues. In early October, a fire at Eastman’s facility in Kingsport shut down upstream units at the plant. On the demand side, etac is used to produce inks, coatings, adhesives and cosmetics. Etac demand is affected by seasonality in the construction sector, which has its strong season in the spring and summer in North America.

PRICES

US etac prices rose throughout the beginning of the year amid tight supply and increasing demand as the downstream construction sector ramped up. Supply tightened as Celanese scheduled a turnaround at its upstream acetyls units in Clear Lake, Texas in the first half of the year. Additionally, tight upstream ethylene supply had limited production of ethylene-based etac during the second quarter. Mid-way through 2017, prices were steady to softer as supply levels improved and as the summer peak construction season was under way. Prices began climbing again in September, following disruptions from Hurricane Harvey. Two producers put customers on tight allocations amid shipping problems and upstream shortages. Prices are expected to moderate once logistical systems and upstream supplies normalise in the future.

TECHNOLOGY

Etac is mainly produced by the esterification of ethanol or ethylene with acetic acid. Some is produced by the catalytic condensation of acetaldehyde with alkoxides.
In the main esterification process, a mixture of acetic acid and ethanol is preheated with a small amount of sulphuric acid. This is fed to an esterifying column for reflux. The mixture removed from there goes into a second refluxing column where etac is removed. A third refluxing column is used to remove impurities. A number of newer technologies have been  commercialised in China and South Africa. Sasol, which is based in South Africa, had a process developed by Norwegian engineering and construction company Aker Kvaerner at its 50,000 tonne/year plant in Secunda, South Africa, that uses only ethanol feedstock. Chinese National Petroleum developed a one-step ethanol process where ethanol is partially oxidized to acetic acid and then esterified with excess ethanol.

OUTLOOK

In the coming weeks, etac supply is expected to remain tight as logistical systems and upstream production return to normal following Hurricane Harvey, the Mexico earthquakes and the fore at Eastman Chemical’s Kingsport, Tennessee facility. Supply levels should normailse late in 2017. Meanwhile, demand could remain strong in the coming weeks as the construction sector is bolstered by repairs from several hurricanes and earthquakes. However, that demand is expected to ease during North American winter, which is the off-peak season for the construction sector.