Powdered Activated Carbon: Recent Market Dynamics, Analysis, and Forecast

I. Market Price Dynamics
1. Benchmark Price
As of May 25, 2026, the Business Society’s benchmark price for activated carbon stands at RMB 12,766.67 per ton, representing a 0.91% decline from the previous month (April 25) and a cumulative drop of approximately 1.3% since the beginning of the year (January 25).
- Significant regional price differentiation is observed:
- Zhengzhou City, Henan Province: Coal-based powdered activated carbon (iodine number 300–950 mg/g) is priced at RMB 2,300 per ton; premium-grade products (iodine number ≥1,150 mg/g) command RMB 13,850 per ton.
- Shanxi Province: Shanxi Xinhua Activated Carbon Co., Ltd. prices its premium coal-based powdered activated carbon (iodine number ≥1,150 mg/g) at RMB 13,850 per ton—accounting for 25% of China’s total coal-based powdered activated carbon production capacity.
- Cangzhou City, Hebei Province: Coal-based granular activated carbon (iodine number 900 mg/g) is priced at RMB 7,600 per ton; cylindrical activated carbon (iodine number 1,000 mg/g) is priced at RMB 9,300 per ton.

2. Price Volatility Characteristics
- Short-term volatility: Prices have exhibited a downward oscillating trend since May, declining from RMB 12,833.33 per ton on May 15 to RMB 12,766.67 per ton on May 25—a 0.52% decrease.
- Regional divergence: Prices remain relatively stable in coal-rich provinces such as Henan and Shanxi, whereas greater volatility is observed in industrially concentrated regions like Hebei and Jiangsu, where pricing is highly sensitive to downstream procurement rhythms.

II. Market Driving Factor Analysis
1. Cost Structure
- Coal prices: In 2026, price fluctuations in major coal-producing regions have narrowed to ±4.3%, alleviating cost pressure. The average price of high-quality lump coal in Jincheng, Shanxi, rose 4.7% year-on-year; however, coal-based activated carbon prices did not rise correspondingly—indicating squeezed industry profit margins.
- Raw material composition: Coconut-shell-based carbon costs face rising volatility risk due to Indonesia’s export quota policy; by contrast, coal-based carbon benefits from stable domestic supply and thus retains a distinct cost advantage.

2. Supply-Demand Balance
- Supply side:
- Industry capacity continues to expand, yet high-end products (e.g., high iodine number, low ash content) remain partially import-dependent, while low-end products suffer from overcapacity.
- Leading enterprises are mitigating cost pressures through technological upgrades—for instance, the share of regenerated carbon-based powder has increased to 15.7%; however, small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) face heightened risks of elimination due to rising environmental compliance costs.
- Demand side:
- Traditional applications: Water treatment (40% share) remains stable, driven by municipal drinking water quality upgrades and advanced industrial wastewater treatment (e.g., electroplating and dyeing industries), which bolster demand for powdered activated carbon. Air purification (28.3% share) benefits from the 92.7% completion rate of ultra-low emissions retrofitting in the thermal power sector, fueling strong demand for flue gas desulfurization and denitrification.
- Emerging applications: Food & pharmaceutical-grade usage accounts for 19.5% of total demand; pharmaceutical-grade segment growth is particularly robust—GMP-certified enterprises have increased to 37, achieving an average annual growth rate of 12.4%. Demand for high-performance powdered activated carbon in new energy applications (e.g., lithium-ion battery recycling) is emerging.

3. Policy and Environmental Drivers
- Domestic policies:
- Standardization of activated carbon replacement cycles in VOCs control facilities is expected to generate an additional annual procurement volume of 86,000 tons.
- China’s “Dual Carbon” goals (carbon peak and carbon neutrality) intensify industrial exhaust gas treatment demand; as the most cost-effective adsorption material, activated carbon continues to gain market penetration.
- International policies:
- The EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) imposes stricter carbon footprint requirements on Chinese exporting enterprises, prompting domestic firms to invest more heavily in green production technologies.

III. Competitive Landscape
1. Advantages of Leading Enterprises
- Technological barriers: Ningxia Huahui has launched China’s first fully automated intelligent particle-size grading production line for powdered activated carbon, achieving D90 ≤ 25 μm and enhancing adsorption efficiency by 12%. Jiangsu Zhuxi holds a 27.3% market share for high-iodine-number (≥1,150 mg/g) pharmaceutical-grade products.
- End-to-end service capabilities: Beijing OriginWater Technology’s EPC project specifications require 63% of suppliers to deliver full-cycle services—including activated carbon selection, loading design, saturation monitoring, and regeneration/recovery—highlighting the competitive edge of technology-integrated suppliers.

2. Regional Competition Patterns
- Coal-rich regions: Enterprises in Shanxi and Ningxia leverage raw material advantages to focus on coal-based activated carbon, primarily targeting industrial exhaust gas treatment and water treatment markets.
- Coastal regions: Firms in Hebei and Jiangsu concentrate on high-end segments, developing customized products (e.g., low-ash food-grade activated carbon, high-specific-surface-area supercapacitor-grade activated carbon); export growth remains steady at 10.5% year-on-year.

IV. Future Trend Forecast
1. Price Outlook
- Short term: Balanced supply-demand and stable input costs will support prices within the RMB 12,700–12,900 per ton range; however, regional price divergence is expected to intensify, with elevated volatility risk in industrially concentrated areas.
- Long term: Tightening environmental regulations, accelerating demand from emerging sectors, and technological advances (e.g., intelligent manufacturing reducing batch quality variation coefficient to 70% combined market share, though growth will decelerate to 3–4% annually.
- Emerging sectors: Food & pharmaceutical-grade demand is projected to grow >10% annually; new energy applications (e.g., lithium-ion battery recycling) are poised to emerge as a key growth driver post-2027.

3. Accelerated Industry Consolidation
- Rising environmental compliance costs and intensified competition will phase out SMEs lacking technical or scale advantages. The industry’s CR5 (combined market share of the top five enterprises) is forecast to increase from 63.7% in 2025 to 68% in 2026, with leading firms further consolidating positions via M&A and vertical integration.

4. Technology Development Directions
- High specific surface area activated carbon synthesis: To meet stringent purity requirements in new energy and semiconductor applications.
- Intelligent production control systems: AI-driven optimization of activation processes enabling precise pore structure control and enhanced product consistency.
- Green regeneration technologies: Reducing lifecycle costs by over 30%, thereby easing raw material cost pressures.