Wet electronic chemicals are critical basic and supporting chemical materials in the electronics industry, exerting significant impacts on the development of the electronic sector with growing importance. Driven by the expansion of downstream industries, China’s wet‑electronic‑chemicals industry has achieved rapid development in recent years, with steady growth in output, demand and market scale.

What Are Wet Electronic Chemicals

As a branch of electronic chemicals, wet electronic chemicals are internationally known as Process Chemicals, and commonly referred to as Wet Chemicals in the United States, Europe and other regions. They cover various liquid chemicals adopted in wet manufacturing processes for microelectronics and optoelectronics, mainly including wet etching, cleaning and developing.

Wet electronic chemicals feature a wide product range. Based on composition and application, they are generally divided into general‑purpose chemicals and functional chemicals. General‑purpose wet electronic chemicals are dominated by ultra‑high‑purity reagents, which set the strictest requirements for particle and impurity control among chemical reagents. Normally, dust particle size shall be kept below 0.5 μm and impurity content shall be lower than parts‑per‑million (10⁻⁶) level.

Wet electronic chemicals demand high‑quality performance. They serve as vital electronic chemical materials for new‑energy industries, new‑generation information technology and new‑display technology. Purity acts as their most essential product indicator. The core of manufacturing lies in controlling metal‑ion content and dust‑particle quantity. The purity of wet electronic chemicals directly determines the yield, electrical performance and reliability of electronic products. In terms of product standards, unified domestic quality specifications have not yet been issued in China. Globally, the widely‑adopted specification is the SEMI standard formulated by Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International.

Fabrication of different electronic components imposes different purity requirements on wet electronic chemicals. The photovoltaic solar‑energy sector has relatively low purity requirements, generally meeting G1 grade. Flat‑panel display and LED industries mostly require G2 and G3 grades. The semiconductor sector has the strictest standards: mid‑to‑low‑end applications call for G3 and G4 grades, while certain high‑end scenarios demand G5 grade. In the future, as integrated‑circuit line widths keep shrinking, higher standards will be imposed on metal‑impurity and particle levels within ultra‑high‑purity reagents.

Surging Domestic Demand

China’s wet‑electronic‑chemicals industry started late. Around 2010, boosted by the rapid growth of downstream sectors such as domestic integrated circuits, display panels and solar energy, the domestic wet‑electronic‑chemicals industry entered a phase of fast expansion.

Statistics from China Electronic Materials Industry Association show that China’s wet‑electronic‑chemicals market size reached approximately 8 billion RMB in 2018, with a compound annual growth rate of 17.5 % from 2010 to 2018.

In terms of output, China’s wet‑electronic‑chemicals output stood at merely around 155 000 tons in 2010 and rose to 495 000 tons in 2018, representing a compound annual growth rate of roughly 15.6 % over 2010‑2018.

From the consumption perspective, domestic demand for wet electronic chemicals hit about 905 000 tons in 2018. By segment, display panels constituted the largest consumption market, accounting for 37.7 % of total consumption. The integrated‑circuit and solar‑energy sectors took up 31.2 % and 31.1 % respectively. See Figure 1 for China’s wet‑electronic‑chemicals market size and forecast from 2010 to 2020.

In the past two years, the photovoltaic industry has expanded rapidly driven by national policies and the dual‑carbon goals. According to the photovoltaic report released by the International Energy Agency, global cumulative installed photovoltaic capacity reached 760.4 GW by the end of 2020. Twenty countries added more than 1 GW of new photovoltaic capacity. China ranked first worldwide with 48.2 GW of new installations, compared with 30.1 GW in 2019, marking a 47.2 % year‑on‑year increase in 2020.

The booming photovoltaic industry has generated huge market demand for its supporting sectors. As key auxiliary materials for a core photovoltaic link — solar‑cell production, wet electronic chemicals are indispensable.

The photovoltaic‑cell sector constitutes a major source of demand growth for domestic wet electronic chemicals. According to CPIA data, China’s solar‑cell output amounted to 134.8 GW in 2020. With unit consumption of 3.3 tons per MW, the corresponding demand for wet electronic chemicals reached 445 000 tons, a 58 % increase against 2018 (281 600 tons in 2018).

Replacing traditional energy sources and cutting costs of photovoltaic products are the driving forces sustaining the growth of the global photovoltaic industry. The photovoltaic sector will keep expanding, and demand for wet electronic chemicals for solar cells will maintain upward momentum.

Data Source: China Electronic Materials Industry Association

Figure 1 China’s wet‑electronic‑chemicals market size and forecast, 2010‑2020

China’s demand growth for wet electronic chemicals is closely correlated with the development of domestic display‑panel, integrated‑circuit and solar‑cell industries. Output growth of these three major application markets is largely consistent with their demand growth for wet electronic chemicals. Overall, their demand for wet electronic chemicals is expected to maintain an annual growth rate of 15 %‑20 %.

At present, there are roughly more than 40 domestic wet‑electronic‑chemicals manufacturers, among which over 30 enterprises possess certain production scale and products compliant with international standards. Few are foreign‑funded; most are domestic or joint‑venture enterprises. A large number of wet‑electronic‑chemicals firms cluster in Jiangyin, Jiangsu Province, such as Jianghua Microelectronics Materials, Suzhou Jingrui Chemical, Jiangyin Runma and Jiangyin Chemical Reagent Factory, contributing 40 % of East China’s total wet‑electronic‑chemicals output.

Challenges Facing China’s Wet‑Electronic‑Chemicals Industry

The vigorous development of the electronic‑information industry brings historic opportunities for China’s wet‑electronic‑chemicals sector. Nevertheless, domestic substitution still faces considerable obstacles and remains an arduous task.

First, there exists a substantial technological gap between Chinese wet‑electronic‑chemicals producers and overseas counterparts. Mainstream domestic production capacity is still confined to G2 and G3 grades, while foreign manufacturers have realized mass production of G5‑grade products. China remains heavily reliant on imports for high‑end products. According to China Electronic Materials Industry Association, the domestic‑substitution rate of wet electronic chemicals for processing wafers of 6‑inch and below has climbed to 82 % in mainland China’s semiconductor market, yet the rate for 8‑inch and larger wafers is less than 20 %.

Second, as critical supporting chemical materials for the electronic‑information industry, wet electronic chemicals follow the rule of “one generation of materials enables one generation of products” and feature fast iteration. Future trends of electronic‑information products directly shape the development direction of the wet‑electronic‑chemicals industry. Emerging products and processes will impose higher quality requirements. To satisfy market needs, domestic enterprises must accelerate domestic‑substitution progress so as to gradually break free from reliance on foreign core materials.

Finally, the advancement of the wet‑electronic‑chemicals industry relies on national industrial policies and technological progress of related industries. High‑end products in particular are characterized by high technical barriers and great research difficulties, requiring high‑end equipment, professional talents and sustained large‑scale capital investment. For product promotion, support from central and local governments is also essential: offering opportunities for manufacturers, lowering risks for trial‑use clients, overcoming early‑stage market bottlenecks for new products, stimulating effective downstream demand and jointly advancing domestic substitution.