Acrylonitrile: Overview
From toaster casings to sweaters and water treatment
What this tab covers What the chemical is, how big its market is, what it is used for (with shares, volumes, why it wins and what could replace it), and its chain from raw material to end user. Ends with three things to remember.Acrylonitrile (ACN) is made by reacting propylene, ammonia and air over a catalyst (the SOHIO ammoxidation process). It feeds ABS and SAN plastics for appliances and cars, acrylic fibre for knitwear, acrylamide for water treatment, nitrile rubber, adiponitrile for nylon 66, and carbon fibre. World capacity is roughly 9-10 Mt a year against demand of about 7 Mt, and Chinese additions since 2023 have pushed prices to about $1,000/t. India has no running plant and imports nearly all it uses, which links ACN to India's textile, appliance and car supply chains.
Volume about 7 Mt a year of demand (2025, indicative) Market value about $7-8 billion (2025, indicative: 7 Mt x $1,050-1,250/t) Growth about 2-3% a year, led by ABS and acrylamide in North-East Asia (indicative); capacity is growing faster Alchempro Q1 2026 (prices); Indianpetrochem 2026 (growth drivers); volumes indicative (basis: S&P Global and ICIS estimates as commonly reported)Key uses
| Use | Share | Annual volume | Why this commodity | Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABS and SAN plastics | 38% | about 2.7 Mtbasis | ACN gives ABS chemical resistance, rigidity and heat resistance; ABS contains about 20-30% ACN. Appliances, car interiors, electronics housings and toys. China's ABS build-out made it the largest ACN market. indicative (S&P Global/ICIS splits); Indianpetrochem 2026 (ABS a main growth driver) | Polypropylene compounds Polycarbonate blends HIPS |
| Acrylic fibre | 20% | about 1.4 Mtbasis | Polyacrylonitrile fibre is wool-like, warm and dyes brightly; used for sweaters, blankets, socks and upholstery. Demand is flat to falling as polyester takes share. indicative; Indianpetrochem 2026 (India acrylic uses) | Polyester Wool Modacrylic |
| Acrylamide (polyacrylamide for water treatment, oilfield and mining) | 16% | about 1.1 Mtbasis | ACN is hydrated (often enzymatically) to acrylamide, then polymerised into flocculants for water and sludge treatment, enhanced oil recovery and paper. A growth driver to 2030. indicative; Indianpetrochem 2026 | Natural polymers (starch, chitosan) for some flocculation |
| Adiponitrile (nylon 66) | 7% | about 0.5 Mtbasis | Electrohydrodimerisation of ACN gives adiponitrile, then hexamethylenediamine for nylon 66 (Ascend Performance Materials, Asahi Kasei). indicative | Butadiene hydrocyanation route to adiponitrile |
| Nitrile rubber (NBR) | 6% | about 0.4 Mtbasis | NBR with 25-42% ACN resists oils; used for seals, hoses and nitrile gloves. indicative; European Rubber Journal Oct 2025 (NBR grades 25-42% ACN) | Fluoroelastomers (costlier) Natural rubber latex for gloves |
| Carbon fibre and other (barrier resins, specialty chemicals) | 13% | about 0.9 Mtbasis | PAN precursor is spun and carbonised into carbon fibre for aircraft, wind blades and pressure vessels; about 2 t ACN per t carbon fibre (indicative). indicative | Pitch-based carbon fibre Glass fibre |
From raw material to user
- Propylene and ammonia About 1.1 t propylene and 0.48 t ammonia per t ACN (indicative).
- Ammoxidation Fluidised-bed reactor at about 400-500 C with a bismuth-molybdate catalyst; very exothermic, generating high-pressure steam (indicative).
- Quench and recovery Ammonia is neutralised with sulphuric acid (ammonium sulphate by-product); ACN, HCN and acetonitrile are separated by distillation.
- Co-products HCN about 0.1 t and acetonitrile about 0.02-0.03 t per t ACN (indicative); HCN feeds methyl methacrylate and cyanides.
- Derivatives Shipped in chemical tankers to ABS, acrylic fibre and acrylamide plants.
Made from (commodity table)
Oil Crude oilGas Natural gasThree things to know
- Asia plans about 2.7 Mt of new ACN capacity by 2030, 2.44 Mt of it in China (GlobalData).
- ACN fell from about $1.30/kg CFR South Asia in January 2025 to about $1.04/kg in February 2026 (Alchempro).
- India has one 24 kt/yr plant (Reliance, Vadodara) that has made nothing since at least 2016-17, so it imports almost all its ACN (Indianpetrochem).