Dimethyl silicone oil: Technological Breakthrough and Market Differentiation under the Reshaping of Supply and Demand Patterns


1. Amid price fluctuations, mid-to-high-end products demonstrate resilience
Market data for October 2025 shows that the mainstream quotations of industrial-grade dimethyl silicone oil (350cs) fluctuate within the range of 15,000 to 19,500 yuan per ton, a decrease of 8.5% compared to the beginning of the year, mainly due to the decline in upstream industrial silicon prices. However, high-end products have shown a counter-trend growth. The price of medical-grade silicone oil has reached over 35,000 yuan per ton, and the premium rate of electronic-grade products has exceeded 100%. Leading enterprises have increased the proportion of high-end products to 35% by optimizing their production capacity structure, with the unit gross profit being 20 percentage points higher than that of ordinary products. It is expected that in the next three years, the industry will form a new pattern of "high-end products leading growth and competition in the mid-to-low-end market for existing customers".

2. Intelligent production promotes technological innovation
Leading domestic enterprises have reduced the residual amount of cyclic siloxane from 500 PPM to below 50ppm by introducing supercritical fluid technology, meeting the pharmaceutical grade standards. The quality control system based on artificial intelligence can monitor the parameters of polymerization reactions in real time, improving the stability of product batches by 70% and reducing unit energy consumption by 23%. A certain demonstration factory has achieved full-process automation from the input of silicon powder to the packaging of finished products. Compared with traditional processes, its production efficiency has increased by 40%, and labor costs have decreased by 50%. Intelligent transformation has driven up the industry concentration. It is expected that the market share of the top five enterprises will exceed 60% by 2025.

3. Environmental protection policies are compelling industries to undergo green transformation
The Ministry of Ecology and Environment's "Comprehensive Governance Plan for Volatile Organic Compounds in Key Industries" stipulates that by the end of 2025, the VOCs emissions of dimethyl silicone oil producers should be reduced by 15% compared to 2020. Enterprises achieve their emission reduction targets through technological upgrades. For instance, by replacing traditional distillation processes with membrane separation technology, they can reduce VOCs emissions by 82%. The closed-loop production system enables the recycling rate of the by-product tetramethyldisiloxane to reach over 95%. Policy dividends have given rise to new markets. The order volume of low-volatile and degradable silicone oil products has increased by 120% year-on-year. Some enterprises have gained a competitive edge in exporting to the European Union by obtaining carbon footprint certification.

4. Emerging markets and cross-border applications open up growth space
Southeast Asia has become a new growth point for dimethyl silicone oil exports. In 2024, exports to Indonesia and Vietnam will increase by 25% year-on-year, mainly used in the production of building sealants and automotive care products. In the field of daily chemicals, hydrophilic modified silicone oil (KF-6070W) achieves efficient emulsification of water and oil phases by introducing hydroxyl groups, and is widely used in silicone-free shampoo formulas, increasing the smoothness of the product by 30%. In the agricultural sector, silicone oil-based spray adjuvants can reduce pesticide usage by 20% to 30%, while increasing the foliar absorption rate by 15%. They have great potential in the promotion of green agriculture.