4 Are Ionic Liquids Enabling Technology? Startup to Scale-Up …
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and provides the advantage of easy surface modifications [19]. Multiple reviews on
chitin and its properties are available elsewhere [20–25].
4.2.2 Chitin Market
The global chitin market was worth $803 million in 2016, increased to $893 million
in 2017, and is predicted to triple to $2,941 million by 2027 according to Global
Industry Analysis [26]. The global chitin market is projected to have a compound
annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.7% throughout the period of 2017–2027. New
biomedical products are the main drivers of this market. Overall, the healthcare
segment, estimated at $309 million in 2017, is projected to grow at a CAGR of
14.2% throughout 2017–2027 and is anticipated to reach $1 billion by the end of
2027. For instance, chitin-based materials have been proposed for artificial organs
[27], space-filling implants [28], drug delivery systems [29, 30], tissue engineering
materials [31], wound dressings [32], treatment of burns [33], artificial skin, and
plastic skin surgery [34].
Even though there is a high demand for chitin and its derivatives, currently there
is no North American producer of chitin. In 2008, there were five companies that
dealt with chitin derivatives (namely, chitosan and glucosamine) including Biothera
Inc., CarboMer, Inc., HaloSource, Inc., V-Labs, Inc., and United Chitotechnologies
[35]. Even though some of these companies claimed chitin production, they used a
100-year-old chemical and energy-intensive process that degraded chitin by reducing
its molecular weight. This process also results in a large degree of deacetylation of
chitin, producing chitosan, a polymer with different properties. Unfortunately, the
lack of rigor in terminology has led to confusion in the markets about the actual
properties of chitin as a material versus chitosan.
In 2018, there were only two functioning facilities identified: Tidal Vision, Inc.
[36] and CarboMer, Inc. [37]. Tidal Vision is a company that manufactures chitinbased and chitosan-based products and serves various industries including textile,
cosmetic, water treatment, agriculture, food, pharmaceutical, and so forth, and also
sells raw material to research institutions and laboratories [36]. The company claims
to use a “patent-pending, closed-loop processing system” to extract chitin from crab
shells, although the company does not provide the technology of chitin isolation. CarboMer, Inc. [37] is the second company that appears in numerous market reports as a
producer of chitin; however, we were unable to find either chitin or its derivative, chitosan, in the company’s product list. The company sells polyamino acids, polyglycolides and polylactides, collagens, poly(3-hydroxybutyrate), PLA, poly(estradiol phosphate), poly(ethylene adipate), poly(glycolic acid), and polyinosinic-polycytidylic
acids as biopolymers [37].
Chitin is used in animal feed as a dietary supplement. It is reported to promote
animal growth, to improve adsorption of nutrients, and to inhibit the effect of harmful
microorganisms [38]. Its properties also make the polymer an ideal material for the
following uses in agriculture: (1) as a fertilizer, (2) as a fungicide and pesticide in
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and provides the advantage of easy surface modifications [19]. Multiple reviews on
chitin and its properties are available elsewhere [20–25].
4.2.2 Chitin Market
The global chitin market was worth $803 million in 2016, increased to $893 million
in 2017, and is predicted to triple to $2,941 million by 2027 according to Global
Industry Analysis [26]. The global chitin market is projected to have a compound
annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.7% throughout the period of 2017–2027. New
biomedical products are the main drivers of this market. Overall, the healthcare
segment, estimated at $309 million in 2017, is projected to grow at a CAGR of
14.2% throughout 2017–2027 and is anticipated to reach $1 billion by the end of
2027. For instance, chitin-based materials have been proposed for artificial organs
[27], space-filling implants [28], drug delivery systems [29, 30], tissue engineering
materials [31], wound dressings [32], treatment of burns [33], artificial skin, and
plastic skin surgery [34].
Even though there is a high demand for chitin and its derivatives, currently there
is no North American producer of chitin. In 2008, there were five companies that
dealt with chitin derivatives (namely, chitosan and glucosamine) including Biothera
Inc., CarboMer, Inc., HaloSource, Inc., V-Labs, Inc., and United Chitotechnologies
[35]. Even though some of these companies claimed chitin production, they used a
100-year-old chemical and energy-intensive process that degraded chitin by reducing
its molecular weight. This process also results in a large degree of deacetylation of
chitin, producing chitosan, a polymer with different properties. Unfortunately, the
lack of rigor in terminology has led to confusion in the markets about the actual
properties of chitin as a material versus chitosan.
In 2018, there were only two functioning facilities identified: Tidal Vision, Inc.
[36] and CarboMer, Inc. [37]. Tidal Vision is a company that manufactures chitinbased and chitosan-based products and serves various industries including textile,
cosmetic, water treatment, agriculture, food, pharmaceutical, and so forth, and also
sells raw material to research institutions and laboratories [36]. The company claims
to use a “patent-pending, closed-loop processing system” to extract chitin from crab
shells, although the company does not provide the technology of chitin isolation. CarboMer, Inc. [37] is the second company that appears in numerous market reports as a
producer of chitin; however, we were unable to find either chitin or its derivative, chitosan, in the company’s product list. The company sells polyamino acids, polyglycolides and polylactides, collagens, poly(3-hydroxybutyrate), PLA, poly(estradiol phosphate), poly(ethylene adipate), poly(glycolic acid), and polyinosinic-polycytidylic
acids as biopolymers [37].
Chitin is used in animal feed as a dietary supplement. It is reported to promote
animal growth, to improve adsorption of nutrients, and to inhibit the effect of harmful
microorganisms [38]. Its properties also make the polymer an ideal material for the
following uses in agriculture: (1) as a fertilizer, (2) as a fungicide and pesticide in