November 11, 2026 | Daily Amine Industry Briefing | Today’s Headlines

Today’s briefing follows the global amine industry across polyurethane and epoxy additives, catalytic synthesis, pharmaceutical intermediates, imidazole derivatives, and oilfield and agrochemical formulations. The four items below are drawn from reports published between 5 and 11 November 2026, two of them released today. Supplier advertisements, promotional price lists, telephone numbers, instant-messaging contacts and QR codes have been excluded.

1. PU China 2026 Puts Specialty Amine Catalysts at the Centre of Polyurethane Upgrading

1. Summary: The 22nd China International Polyurethane Exhibition (PU China 2026) ran in Shanghai on 3–5 November, and an industry review published today frames it as a turning point: under the 15th Five-Year Plan, Chinese polyurethane is moving away from capacity expansion toward high-end, green and customised raw materials and additives, because mid-to-low-tier capacity is ample while high-end additives remain in short supply. Specialty amine catalysts were among the most concrete evidence. Hailuo Hengguang exhibited new ZF10-series specialty amine catalysts designed to support domestic volume production of high-end specialty polyurethane and close a local technology gap. Suzhou Xiangyuan launched HMDEA, a new chain extender for high-transparency energy-storage protective films used in electronics and photovoltaics. Evonik introduced two global and two Asian firsts, including DABCO NE 1067, an ultra-low-emission catalyst, and DABCO SI 1218 LO, a low-odour surfactant for automotive moulded foam targeting VDA 278, while TEGOSTAB silicone surfactants paired with DABCO and POLYCAT amine catalysts address rigid foam in appliances, construction and cold chains. Red Baoli displayed a full isopropanolamine range — monoisopropanolamine, diisopropanolamine, triisopropanolamine, diethanolmonoisopropanolamine and hydroxyethyl diisopropanolamine — showing how propylene oxide producers are integrating into alkanolamines. Sterically hindered amidines such as DBU remain the reference strong gel catalyst for low-odour, aliphatic-isocyanate systems.

2. Source: Tonghuashun Industry Channel (10jqka.com.cn), 11 Nov 2026 — https://field.10jqka.com.cn/20261111/c681690984.shtml ; PUdaily (pudaily.com), 5 Nov 2026 — https://test2025.pudaily.com/News/2026-11-05/1314979 ; PlasInsight (plasinsight.com), Nov 2026.

3. Editor’s Pick + Reason: The ZF10 specialty amine catalyst launch together with the low-emission DABCO NE 1067 and POLYCAT catalyst pairing. Reason: These are the data points that turn a policy narrative into specific chemistries that formulators can actually qualify. Low-VOC, low-odour and ultra-low-emission catalysts are becoming a purchasing requirement rather than a premium option, and local supply of high-end amine catalysts shortens lead times while reducing import dependency.

2. Green Catalytic Polyethylene Polyamine Technology Reaches Industrial Scale; Epoxy Forum Flags High-End Ethanolamine Gaps

1. Summary: A plant built on the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics’ proprietary DICP-PEPA technology has passed one-pass commissioning at Shouguang Dexin Chemical’s 23,000 t/a specialty amine intermediates project in Shandong and is now running continuously with the full flowsheet connected. PEPA covers triethylenetetramine, tetraethylenepentamine and higher ethyleneamines — high-value fine intermediates used mainly as epoxy curing agents and in industrial coatings, and long dependent on imports. The dominant dichloroethane route carries heavy waste, high isomer content and inconsistent quality; DICP-PEPA generates no solid waste or wastewater and delivers triethylenetetramine above 99.5% purity. The DNL0805 team previously licensed a 30,000 t/a ethylenediamine unit that started up in 2024 and has commissioned ten specialty amine plants, completing an ethylenediamine → piperazine → diethylenetriamine → polyethylene polyamine chain. In a related development, the 2026 Epoxy and Derivatives Sustainable Development Forum held 5–6 November in Jiaxing, and reported today, concluded that China’s epoxy sector must shift from scale expansion to structural upgrading: bulk epoxy basics are in periodic overcapacity, while pharmaceutical-grade, electronic-grade and narrow-distribution ethoxylates remain in short supply. Delegates explicitly named ethanolamines, nonionic surfactants and polyether polyols as priorities for high-end, refined development. Both stories point to the same bottleneck — commodity amines are abundant, while high-purity, tightly specified amine derivatives are not.

2. Source: Jiangsu Chemical Network (jschemnet.cn), 5 Nov 2026 — http://www.jschemnet.cn/index.php/news/info/31506.html ; China Chemical Industry News via 163.com, 11 Nov 2026 ; Tonghuashun (10jqka.com.cn), 9 Nov 2026.

3. Editor’s Pick + Reason: The >99.5% triethylenetetramine purity and zero-waste claim attached to a named, operating 23,000 t/a unit. Reason: For epoxy curing-agent buyers this is auditable evidence rather than a laboratory promise; for synthesis teams it shows a greener alternative to dichloroethane chemistry entering commercial tonnage, while the ethanolamine gap flagged in Jiaxing indicates where the next wave of investment is likely to land.

3. Late-Stage Functionalisation and Asymmetric Catalysis Widen the Pharmaceutical Amine Toolbox

1. Summary: Three peer-reviewed results and one institutional report published in the past week target the C–N bond directly. On 6 November, Nature Communications reported a photoredox/cobalt dual-catalytic method for N-methyl-selective alpha-C–H vinylation of unactivated trialkylamines with internal alkynes (DOI 10.1038/s41467-026-79060-0). Tertiary amine motifs are common in drug molecules, but competing alpha-amino C–H bonds make selective modification difficult; the new route functionalises the N-methyl group at a late stage, opening chemical space without rebuilding the entire synthesis. A Nature Synthesis paper from SUSTech describes nickel-catalysed regio- and enantioselective reductive dimerisation of enamines with alkynes to give chiral allylic amines (DOI 10.1038/s44160-026-01172-8), already applied to key intermediates of several drug molecules. A related Nature Catalysis study (DOI 10.1038/s41929-026-01628-2, covered 7 November) uses trifunctional zirconium catalysis — photochemical ligand-to-metal charge-transfer radical generation, Lewis-acid aldehyde activation and redox turnover — to build benzylamines from alkanes, aldehydes and nitriles. On 10 November, Westlake University reported a cinchona-alkaloid-derived diquaternary ammonium salt catalyst that achieves precise control over challenging asymmetric SN2 substitutions, a reaction class widely used in pharmaceutical and agrochemical production. The common thread is that amines are increasingly treated as editable scaffolds rather than fixed end points.

2. Source: Nature Communications, 6 Nov 2026 (doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-79060-0) ; SUSTech Grubbs Institute, Nature Synthesis 2026 ; Scienmag / Nature Catalysis, 7 Nov 2026 ; Science and Technology Daily via Sina Finance, 10 Nov 2026.

3. Editor’s Pick + Reason: The photoredox/cobalt N-methyl-selective C–H vinylation. Reason: Late-stage functionalisation of existing amine-containing active ingredients is the shortest route to new analogues, and site selectivity among near-identical alpha-amino C–H bonds has been the field’s main obstacle. A dual-catalytic solution is directly relevant to medicinal chemistry teams and to custom synthesis suppliers.

4. Imidazole Derivatives, Agrochemical Amines and Oilfield Inhibitor Chemistry Show Steady Demand Signals

1. Summary: A November 2026 trade analysis of HS 293329 (other unfused imidazole ring compounds) shows Brazil imported USD 63.30 million, or 1,384.71 tonnes, in the twelve months to August 2026, up 20.15% year on year, with China supplying 59.38% of import value. Brazil ranked first among 68 major importing markets on a composite attractiveness ranking. Imidazole derivatives serve as active pharmaceutical ingredients, latent epoxy curing agents and accelerators, agricultural fungicides and corrosion inhibitors — one product family spanning four of the sectors this briefing follows. On 5 November, a dibutylamine price outlook put the Q3 2026 global average near USD 2,670/MT, essentially flat quarter on quarter, and forecast a Q4 2026 band of USD 2,590–2,780/MT, with China the lowest-cost region at about USD 2,180/MT. Dibutylamine is produced by aminating n-butanol with ammonia and feeds rubber vulcanisation accelerators, herbicides and insecticides, corrosion inhibitors, emulsifiers and pharmaceutical synthesis; agrochemicals and rubber chemicals take the largest demand share. On the petroleum side, film-forming imidazoline and organic amine blends remain the standard internal-corrosion control for CO2/H2S brines and multiphase flowlines, with typical dosing of 20–100 ppm for imidazoline blends. Current field guidance stresses probe readings and iron trends over product claims, plus compatibility testing to avoid emulsions and foaming.

2. Source: GTAIC market report, Nov 2026 (gtaic.ai) ; Expert Market Research, Dibutylamine Price Trend and Forecast 2026–2027, updated 5 Nov 2026 (expertmarketresearch.com) ; oilfield corrosion-inhibitor technical guidance, 2026.

3. Editor’s Pick + Reason: The 20.15% year-on-year rise in Brazil’s imidazole-derivative imports, with China holding a 59.38% share. Reason: It is hard customs-based trade data rather than a projection, and imidazole’s combined role as epoxy latent curing agent, pharmaceutical and agrochemical intermediate, and corrosion-inhibitor backbone makes it a useful single indicator of demand across several downstream sectors at once.

Compiled 11 November 2026. Illustrations are original, AI-generated, unlicensed-third-party-free and watermark-free. Times and dates refer to GMT+8.