From Mid-to-Low End Substitution to High-End Breakthrough: The Rise of China's Electronic-Grade Chemicals Industry

The performance and yield of the smart devices you use daily and the new energy vehicles you drive depend largely on an unsung hero: electronic-grade chemicals. Known as "the pearl on the crown of fine chemicals", they serve as the fundamental cornerstone underpinning the high-tech industry.

In the past, the global high-end market was monopolized by industry giants from the US, Japan, Germany and South Korea, with China's import dependence on certain materials exceeding 99%. Today, however, the tide is turning. With continuous breakthroughs in domestic technologies, the proportion of high-end domestic electronic chemicals is rising steadily.

l Wet electronic chemicals (the "ultra-pure reagents" for chip cleaning): Used for cleaning and etching processes. The photovoltaic sector has now achieved nearly full domestic substitution; the self-sufficiency rate in the panel display sector has surpassed 50%, and that in the semiconductor sector is growing steadily. Nevertheless, domestic products are mainly concentrated in the mid-range Grade G3, while the highest-end Grade G4/G5 products remain dominated by foreign-funded enterprises.

l Photoresists (the "magic ink" for circuit patterning): Used to transfer circuit patterns. For mature processes (G-line/I-line), the self-sufficiency rate exceeds 20%, with domestic products already entering mainstream wafer fabs. However, for high-end processes (KrF/ArF) and cutting-edge EUV photoresists, the localization rate remains extremely low, with heavy reliance on imports.

l Electronic specialty gases (the "specialty breathing" for manufacturing): Used for deposition and etching processes. The overall self-sufficiency rate of electronic specialty gases stands at around 45%. Basic bulk gases such as nitrogen and oxygen have been nearly fully localized, but high-grade specialty gases for core processes still require large-scale imports.

l Polishing materials and high-purity reagents (consumables for chip "polishing"): Leading domestic enterprises have captured a significant market share in polishing slurries. However, for ultra-high-purity chemical reagents (such as 9N grade with 99.9999999% purity), the self-sufficiency rate is less than 20%.

Although domestic electronic chemicals have begun to make their mark on the global stage, three major hurdles must be overcome to achieve comprehensive high-end substitution:

l The gap in core technologies. Advanced process nodes impose extremely stringent requirements on material purity, impurity control and batch-to-batch consistency, while underlying core technologies have long been locked up by foreign players. Despite substantial progress in formula optimization, process improvement and equipment upgrading, domestic manufacturers still lag behind the world's top standards.

l Lengthy downstream verification barriers. The onboard process of new materials into wafer fabs or panel plants requires multiple rounds of complex testing, typically taking one and a half to three years and incurring extremely high financial and time costs. In addition, downstream customers naturally prefer well-established imported products validated by long-term market use for the sake of yield, which invisibly raises the market entry threshold for new domestic products.

l Shortcomings in the upstream supply chain ecosystem. The supply of high-purity base materials is insufficient, and related specialized equipment, precision testing instruments and even dedicated packaging containers are heavily dependent on overseas imports, directly restricting the yield and quality of final products. Meanwhile, the domestic standard system remains to be improved and is not fully aligned with internationally accepted standards, which to some extent hinders Chinese enterprises' global expansion.

Faced with such formidable technical barriers and high trial-and-error costs, the industry cannot help but ask: are there domestic enterprises or top technical teams that can truly tackle this tough challenge? What the market calls for is no longer simple duplication of low-end production capacity, but game-changers that can break through underlying ultra-high-purity purification technologies, build a closed-loop supply chain, and deliver tangible cost reduction and efficiency gains for downstream wafer fabs and panel plants.

In response to industry pain points, domestic innovative enterprises are actively exploring solutions. ZF group and Fuzhou University have jointly built a pilot-scale innovation service platform, creating a full-chain cooperation model from laboratory to industrialization. Focusing on key areas such as wet electronic chemicals, they have established a collaborative innovation model featuring in-depth integration of "education, research and industry", and jointly built an electronic chemicals industrial ecological cluster with a green closed loop of "R&D – pilot testing – mass production – recycling". This team integrating technical expertise and industrial practice is seeking to fundamentally address the dual challenges of material purity and supply chain security.

In the field of electronic chemicals, ZF group and Fuzhou University, responding to the diverse demands for wet electronic chemicals, have achieved independent purification and recycling of electronic-grade NMP, isopropyl alcohol (IPA), toluene and other products, with purity reaching Grade G4/G5. The products deliver stable performance in scenarios such as chip etching and display panel manufacturing, with metal impurity content meeting ultra-high-purity electronic-grade standards, and are compatible with production needs across multiple sectors including semiconductors, flexible electronics and new energy batteries.