Copper Powder Market

Market Overview

The Global Copper Powder market size was valued at USD 730.70 million in 2022. It is projected to reach USD 1,067.33 million by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 4.30% during the forecast period (2023-2031). 

An orange-red metallic powder called copper powder is utilized mainly in cold-casting processes. It is primarily manufactured using electrolysis, hydrometallurgy, solid-state reduction, and gas and water atomization. Commercially, copper powder is offered in various particle sizes and forms. In addition, the desiccant is typically included in the shipping of copper powder for industrial applications. Therefore, adequate powder storage is required to prevent oxidation between purchase and usage. Due to its excellent electrical and thermal conductivities, pure copper powder is used in the electrical and electronic industries. Copper powder, alloyed with tin, zinc, nickel, and other elements, is used in friction materials and structural parts.

Market Dynamics

Global Copper Powder Market Drivers

Growing Use of Powder Metallurgy in the Automotive Industry

In the automobile sector, components are produced using powder metallurgy (PM), a known environmentally friendly and sustainable process. Since the copper powder is used in all powder metallurgy operations, it is crucial and inextricably related to the production process of the powder and its final qualities. The automobile sector has embraced the PM process more due to its capacity to mass-create quality parts that are dependable, consistent, and affordable.

The PM process's advantages, such as significant cost savings, high dimensional accuracy, good part-to-part reproducibility, minimal post-processing, dimensional freedom, and compositional complexity, are primarily responsible for the growing use of PM over traditional processes (such as machining, casting, and extrusion). Additionally, the PM process provides a great degree of flexibility, enabling the customization of a product's physical attributes to meet the specific property and performance needs of the makers of vehicle componentry.

Global Copper Powder Market Restraint

Changing Cost of Raw Materials

Copper powders of various grades are made from copper metal, which is acquired by purifying and refining copper ore. These copper powders are employed in a wide range of products, such as abrasive wheels, bearings, structural parts, frictional components, and chemical formulations. Copper ore prices have fluctuated over the past five years due to fluctuations in global demand brought on by economic expansion and contraction. The main factors that affect copper prices are the ability of copper suppliers to extract and transport the metal and the demand for goods and services that use copper. The availability and allure of substitute commodities, interest rates, economic growth, and political considerations are among the additional variables. A few essential businesses on both the supply and demand sides also dominate the copper ore market. According to information from the US Geological Survey, the top six nations producing copper ore are responsible for around 65% of production and 54% of reserves.

Global Copper Powder Market Opportunities

Common Use of Atomized Copper Powders in the Process of Surface Coating

Copper particles that have been atomized are crucial for the surface coating process because they assist components to last longer when used in challenging conditions. In surface coating processes such as plasma transferred arc (PTA) welding, laser cladding, powder welding, flame spraying, high-velocity flame spraying (HVOF), and plasma spraying, these powders are primarily employed. The automotive, oil and gas, power generation, aerospace, mining, and construction industries are just a few of the ones that employ copper particles.

Atomized copper powders are primarily employed in wear-resistant coatings of rotating equipment like industrial gas turbines or combustion engines in the aerospace and power generation industries. This is primarily because copper powders resist high temperatures, thermal cycling, and hot gas corrosion. The expansion of the aerospace sector due to rising passenger traffic is anticipated to be critical to global market expansion. Additionally, the industry is projected to maintain its growth trajectory in the upcoming years due to rising investments in the sector and aircraft production.

Regional Analysis

The global copper powder market is divided into four regions, namely North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and LAMEA. 

Asia-Pacific Dominates the Global Market

Asia-Pacific is the most significant shareholder in the global copper powder market and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.40% during the forecast period. One of the critical reasons promoting the expansion of the copper powder market in this region is China's rise as a central global manufacturing hub. China and Japan have large market shares in the world's manufacturing industry. Asia-Pacific is one of the most influential regions in the copper mining and powder metallurgy industries due to its accessibility to raw materials, developing economies, and industrializing nations. However, some nations in the region need to be made aware of copper powder's high durability and excellent recycling credentials. In addition, India is predicted to develop at the fastest rate thanks to advancements in healthcare, energy efficiency, sustainable buildings, renewable energy, and transportation.

Europe is expected to grow at a CAGR of 3.80% during the forecast period. The region's leading economies, including those of Germany, France, and the UK, have shown encouraging growth in recent years. Copper powder's superior electrical and thermal conductivity has encouraged its use in construction, transportation, and heat transfer. More than 72% of copper powder is used in energy-related products, such as wind turbines, wires and cables, electrical motors, and HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) systems that produce, transmit, or consume electricity. As a result of the growth of manufacturing firms in several industries, including real estate, aviation, automotive, and others, the region is moving into growth and expansion.

North America is expected to grow significantly over the forecast period. The growth observed in North America is primarily seen as realistic in the US. Construction is a well-established industry in this region, and electrical component manufacture is increasing, positively affecting copper powder sales growth. The US is one of the most promising country-level markets in the world due to the country's established aerospace and defense sector and growing automotive industry. According to the WGR analysis, the region's demand for copper powder is anticipated to rise as more attention is paid to powder metallurgy products for producing electronic and electrical components.

Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, and the rest of Latin America are the nations considered in the LAMEA region. Brazil uses more than 69% of the copper used for electrical purposes. WGR study from 2019 shows that Brazil's market for electrical and electronic goods is expanding at a rate of 5.47% annually. The regional market expansion is anticipated to be fueled by the rising production of automotive components created using traditional powder metallurgy over the forecast period.

Segmental Analysis

The global copper powder market is segmented by process, type, and end-user.

On the Basis of Proccess

Based on the process, the global copper powder market is bifurcated into atomization, electrolysis, hydrometallurgy, and solid-state reduction.

The atomization segment is the highest contributor to the market and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.05% during the forecast period. The copper metal is heated before being atomized. A high-velocity jet of gas or liquid, typically water, strikes the liquid metal as it passes through an opening, shattering it into pieces that quickly solidify. In particular, the atomizing medium, pressure, and flow rate impact different particle sizes and shapes. The particle size and form are also affected by tiny controlled additions of deoxidizing elements, such as phosphorus.

In electrolysis, copper is deposited in a spongy or powdery state under the correct parameters, including the electrolyte composition and concentration, temperature, and current density. Washing, drying, reducing, annealing, and crushing are all steps in the electrolysis process, which results in a high-purity and high-density copper powder. Electrolysis is also used to create iron, chromium, and magnesium powders in addition to copper metal. The high energy costs and the electrolysis process's restriction to high-value powders, including copper powders with strong conductivity, severely constrain the segment's growth.

On the Basis of Type

Based on type, the global copper powder market is bifurcated into 100 mesh, 100-200 mesh, 200-300 mesh, 300-400 mesh, and >400 mesh.

The 100 mesh segment is the highest contributor to the market and is estimated to boost at a CAGR of 3.90% during the forecast period. This works wonderfully for making photovoltaic cells and conductive printer ink. Additionally, it has biocidal properties, making it useful in some biomedical contexts.

On the Basis of End-User

Based on end-user, the global copper powder market is bifurcated into metallurgy, chemical electronics, additive manufacturing, and others.

The metallurgy segment is the highest contributor to the market and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.15% during the forecast period. Powder metallurgy is used to produce and form a metal powder. In powder metallurgy, various metal pieces are produced using copper powder either by itself or as an alloy. In order to create a weakly cohesive structure that is close to the dimensions of the final product to be created, the powder is first injected into a mold or run through a die in powder metallurgy. The pressure typically applied in this procedure ranges from 10 to 50 tonnes per square inch. The components are then heated to a high temperature in a kiln. In this phase, the components self-weld without the metal being melted. A recent WGR investigation found that around 82% of the copper and steel powder generated worldwide gets turned into sintered components. Sintered components are manufactured by pressing and heating a specially formulated powder formulation into shape. Sintered components' design flexibility enables complete material utilization.

Copper powders are employed in a variety of chemical processes, including the synthesis of copper salts diphenyl. In order to produce a lovely blue flame, the copper powder can be mixed with a mixture that already contains ammonium perchlorate. However, moisture must be kept from the composition since the interaction of ammonium perchlorate with copper powder produces heat and ammonia gas.

Pure copper powder is frequently used in the electrical and electronics industries due to its excellent electrical and thermal conductivity. For instance, resistance in a circuit generates heat, and the resistance rises as the system temperature rises. Most of the time, copper materials are used in the fans mounted on electrical devices to cool the system. Additionally, copper powder coatings and copper-containing paints cover electronic components in devices that utilize radio frequencies, such as phones, computers, satellite dishes, and GPS tracking.

Recent Developments

• November 2022- In order to increase ore reserves, Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. expanded the orebody at a deeper level of the Hishikari Mine (Isa City, Kagoshima Prefecture). The lower orebody is now being mined after additional preparations for mining activities were finished, including the construction of new dewatering facilities that pump hot spring water from the mine and lower the water level.
• September 2022- The Sociedad Nacional de Minera, the Chilean mining industry association, presented the FY2022 National Mining Society Award to the Quebrada Blanca Phase 2 project, which was being jointly developed by Teck Resources Limited (Headquarters: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada), Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Tokyo, Japan), and Sumitomo Corporation (Headquarters: Tokyo, Japan).