The production of titanium dioxide is a promising development path that everyone has forgotten about

The development of the titanium industry as one of the most promising directions of economic development can really quickly bring Ukraine to the number of developed countries. However, discussions of this topic usually refer to metal titanium, instead, the production of another product of the industry, titanium dioxide is no less promising, and according to certain indicators, – even more profitable.

Titanium dioxide as a white pigment is widely used in the pulp, paint, and automotive industry, in the production of synthetic fibers, rubber products, plastics, heat-resistant and optical glass, white enamel, ceramic dielectrics, etc. It is undoubtedly one of the most used materials in the world. If we consider the entire market of titanium products, the share of titanium dioxide in it is 90–95%. In 2021, the global titanium dioxide market was estimated at USD 20.9 billion and by 2026 it should increase to 27.9 billion.

Ukraine is one of the six countries in the world with deposits of titanium ores, and our deposits are about 20% of the world's reserves. But the country uses its unique position in the world extremely inefficiently, trading mainly in raw materials with little added value. The necessary investments for the production of titanium dioxide are much smaller than for other areas, including metallic titanium, since the costs of obtaining a unit of titanium dioxide are low and do not require the creation of large infrastructure facilities. Therefore, the terms of creating productions are short, besides, with the availability of own raw materials, there is a quick opportunity to implement a closed cycle of production – from the extraction of raw materials to the receipt of final products in the form of varnishes, paints, cosmetic preparations and building materials.

World market

The specificity of the titanium dioxide market is the high concentration of manufacturers. The seven largest producers account for 56% of the world volume. Another 36% is produced by 50 companies in China. At the same time, China accounts for a third of world consumption.

The following states are the largest exporters of titanium dioxide in 2021, according to the World Bank:

• People’s Republic of China (182,3 million dollars, 75,9 thousand tons);
• Germany (139,4 million dollars, 35,7 thousand tons);
• Japan (85,1 million dollars, 19,2 thousand tons);
• France (70,5 million dollars, 14,6 thousand tons);
• India (52.9 million dollars, 45.5 thousand tons).

The biggest importers are:

• the EU (126,2 million dollars, 45,7 thousand tons);
• Germany (117,8 million dollars, 33,5 thousand tons);
• the USA (82,2 million dollars);
• Brazil (54,6 million dollars, 19,8 thousand tons);
• Vietnam (46,3 million dollars, 14,4 thousand tons).

More than 59% of global consumption is accounted for by manufacturers of paints and coatings, 20% by manufacturers of plastics, and 14% by pulp and paper industries. But other consumer niches are also actively growing. For example, titanium dioxide nanoparticles are widely used in photovoltaic systems, including solar cells, the production of which is increasing. It is also promising to use titanium dioxide as a modifier for creating ecological building materials: eco-concrete and eco-paints. This completely new prospect of application can significantly increase global demand and will require an increase in the production of titanium dioxide.

Ukrainian realities

Currently, two main methods of obtaining titanium dioxide are used in the world: the sulfate one and the chlorine one. These technologies were developed and implemented in the post-war years, they are imperfect and environmentally dangerous. It is interesting that the world leader-producer China uses the same technologies developed in the USSR by our specialists in most of its enterprises that produce titanium dioxide. They, like us, will eventually come to the need to improve them, we must do it sooner. But this is not an easy task.

Today, two Ukrainian enterprises that previously produced titanium dioxide are not operating. Crimean Titan chemicals company with the chlorine method of production is located in the occupied territory, and the facilities for the production of titanium dioxide by the sulfate method, which exist at Sumykhimprom chemical industry plant, are currently in the stage of rehabilitation and need re-equipment.

In addition, the technologies at both enterprises are outdated, economically inefficient with high energy consumption, and also threatening the ecology of the regions. Basically, a product of low purity was produced there, which is cheap in the markets. And the disposal and processing of production waste has never been carried out, so the waste still occupies huge territories contaminated with poisonous products. Moreover, with the sulfate technology, the iron contained in ilmenite concentrates is not used, and significant amounts of iron sulfate waste were buried together with a large amount of diluted hydrolytic sulfuric acid contaminated with iron sulfate and other sulfates.

Ukrainian perspectives

Therefore, we will not be able to produce competitive products with high added value on the existing technologically and technically outdated production base.

Instead, we can look at alternative options, in particular, obtaining titanium dioxide by hydrometallurgy methods, the laboratory application of which has shown good results. Hydrometallurgy ensures the complex processing of ilmenite with obtaining all the useful elements contained in the ore. These factors determine the technical and economic advantages of this technology — energy efficiency, environmental friendliness, and complexity of ilmenite processing.

New metallurgical technologies can be another way of obtaining titanium dioxide. These works were successfully carried out in our country before, but then they were suspended - the bet was placed on the raw material development of the industry. And for nothing, Ukraine has always developed world-class titanium production technologies and still has advantages in this regard. On the one hand, China, the world's most powerful manufacturer, is not ready for significant costs for the conversion of its existing huge factories (and is not too concerned about the environmental friendliness of its production), and on the other hand, it has neither alternative developments nor scientists capable of working on them.

On the other hand, if the research work in Ukraine is continued and makes it possible to create a new industrial technology for obtaining titanium dioxide, it will be a world-class breakthrough. Using these technologies, it is possible to obtain a product of a high degree of purity (97–99%) with an increase in the completeness of raw material processing (extraction of titanium dioxide at the level of 92–95%), with the transfer to further processing of components enriched in oxides and salts of iron, chromium, nickel, cobalt , vanadium, scandium, lithium and others. The availability of such technology will become the basis for the development of the country's titanium industry.

However, time is playing against us. The existing scientific potential of practically destroyed industry and factory science, which has obtained impressive results in laboratory conditions, belongs to the age category of 70+. So, it's either now or never.

Do scientists have a plan? They do. However, they will not be able to cope with the problem without the help of the state, so the primary condition is government support for the development of the industry. It is about continuing the development of new technologies for obtaining titanium dioxide, and about helping to create a closed production cycle, which is impossible without reducing the quotas for the export of titanium ores from Ukraine, otherwise there will simply be a lack of raw materials. Of course, scientific cooperation with other countries and the search for investors who are ready to develop the industry together with the state will not be superfluous. We definitely have something to offer the world.

The incentive for active actions should be the realization that the development of this direction is not only the export prospects of Ukraine, but also the prerequisites for the development of enterprises-consumers of a valuable product in the country itself: manufacturers of the paint, paint, construction, chemical and pulp industries, for which the complete cycle from raw materials to final processing at home is a significant advantage and driver of development.