Recent prices hikes for TiO­² include the market leader, Dupont, announcing a $300/ton price increase. Huntsman hiked its prices for the pigment by $200/ton and Kronos by $250/ton.

According to the pricing information service ICIS, DuPont's $0.15/lb price increase for North America TiO­² grades, effective Nov. 1, likely will be implemented in Feb. 2012 since most contracts enjoy 90 days of price protection. According to ICIS, roughly $0.15/lb (+9%) of the last increase (effective July 1, but implemented on Oct.1) likely went through, bringing the North America price to $1.87/lb for 4Q11, up 45% since the start of 2011.

ICIS predicts little respite for buyers of the pigment "given supply constraints that won't be resolved for several years."

One result may be a drop in the number of companies choosing to incorporate "Apple white" into their products. One company hoping to profit from the TiO­² price increases is PQ Corp. of Malvern, PA. The company, a supplier of inorganic specialty chemicals and engineered glass materials, this month announced the launch of ADVERA Ti, a pigment it says can be used for partial replacement of titanium dioxide in coatings, plastics, paper coatings, and other markets.

PQ Corp. markets the material as "a cost-effective replacement for TiO­² at comparable performance." Flavio Ribeiro, commercial development director for PQ Corp., commented, "This new product is a highly viable alternative to titanium dioxide and meets the performance requirements of the market."

ADVERA Ti has a small particle size, is said to be easily dispersed in a matrix material, and has a crystal morphology which facilitates optimum TiO­² spacing. The product also exhibits strong whiteness and brightness (hiding power). ADVERA Ti is manufactured at PQ Corp.'s Jeffersonville, IN. plant.