Actual order growth has propelled single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) toward their second industrialization window.
The industrialization of SWCNTs is entering a critical second opportunity window.
The first opportunity window occurred around 2023, when SWCNT domestic substitution began, with 150-ton capacity expansion projects for SWCNTs emerging in China. However, it was not until 2025 that annual shipments of Chinese SWCNT powder reached the 100-ton threshold for the first time.
Market volume ramp-up pace did not meet expectations initially. This situation reversed in 2026.
In the second half of the year, full-tab small cylindrical cells entered a period of concentrated capacity release, with some product series reaching billion-unit capacity levels. High-performance cell deliveries are accelerating at scale.
Silicon-based anodes are also speeding up. In the first half of this year, domestic production was approximately 5,100 tons, a 45% year-on-year increase, while high-end products remain in short supply.
The upgrade of small cylindrical cells to higher capacity and higher rate capabilities, combined with the accelerated adoption of silicon-based anodes, is jointly driving demand for high-performance conductive materials.
This round of SWCNT growth is now supported by actual orders.
In October, GGII learned from Changzhou Jucarbon Shengcai Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Jucarbon Shengcai") that quotes for high-quality SWCNT powder have reached CNY 8 million—CNY 10 million per ton, and products still enjoy strong sales.
Established in 2025, Jucarbon Shengcai has achieved continuous production and commercial delivery of high-quality SWCNTs and is advancing a new round of capacity expansion.
Moving from expansion expectations to actual procurement, the second round of industrialization opportunities for SWCNTs is materializing faster.
High-Performance Battery UpgradeSWCNTs Become "Hot Commodities"
One day in October2024, seven customers called successively, asking the Jucarbon Shengcai founding team about SWCNT supply sources.
At that time, the company had not yet been established. The team had long-term experience operating conductive materials and had sold imported SWCNT products. The tight supply of high-end products revealed an opportunity for domestic substitution.
Since then, SWCNTs have become increasingly sought-after.
Data from Gaogong Industry Research (GGII) shows that China's SWCNT slurry shipments exceeded 20,000 tons in 2025, with projections expecting over 50,000 tons in 2026.
A more important underlying driver is the continuous upgrade of battery performance. During the iteration of material systems, SWCNT demand opens up in sync with the volume ramp of silicon-based anodes.
The wider the use of silicon-based anodes and the higher the silicon doping ratio, the more prominent the demand for high-performance conductive networks becomes.
Silicon-based materials can improve battery energy density, but volume changes during charging and discharging easily disrupt conductive connections within the electrode. With their high aspect ratio, SWCNTs can build conductive networks at low addition levels, helping maintain electrode stability.
This year, the application of silicon-based anodes is accelerating and deepening.
On one hand, high-end consumer batteries continue to increase silicon doping ratios, with mass-produced mobile phone batteries already exceeding a 40% silicon doping ratio.
On the other hand, power batteries, previously constrained by expansion and cycle life issues, have begun large-scale adoption of new silicon-carbon composites.
GGII data shows that monthly shipments of new silicon-carbon powder for power batteries exceeded 300 tons in August, while monthly shipments of composite silicon-based materials surpassed 4,000 tons.
Expanding application scope and increasing silicon doping ratios are creating larger market space for high-quality SWCNTs.
This round of performance and material system upgrades is particularly evident in the high-performance small cylindrical market.
Since the beginning of this year, full-tab small cylindrical cells have experienced periods of full production and sales, even facing supply shortages.
Traditional markets such as power tools are continuously upgrading, while new applications like drones, robots, and AI data center Backup Battery Units (BBU) are also increasing demand for high-performance cylindrical cells.
Battery companies are accelerating capacity releases. In the second half of the year, some product series have reached billion-unit capacity levels; in September, another company announced adding 57 million units of annual capacity for full-tab 21700 cells to alleviate bottlenecks.
Behind the market shortage lies higher requirements from end-users for cell capacity, power, and range.
Especially in scenarios like drones and power tools, batteries need to store more energy within limited volumes while meeting high-current output demands.
Currently, 21700 cells have achieved 6Ah capacity and 50A continuous discharge, and 5Ah full-tab products have also achieved batch delivery.
High-performance demands are driving the accelerated application of full-tab structures and silicon-based anodes, further highlighting the value of supporting efficient conductive materials.
For Jucarbon Shengcai, this is precisely the direction chosen by the founding team.
The team possesses over a decade of experience in battery materials and conductive agent operations, with long-term engagement with high-performance battery customers. After the concentrated inquiries in 2024, they decided to collaborate with relevant researchers from Nanjing University to enter the field of high-quality SWCNT manufacturing.
From its inception, Jucarbon Shengcai clearly defined its product positioning: benchmarking against international high-end SWCNTs and prioritizing service to high-performance batteries.
Today, the company's products have entered the supply chain for high-performance cylindrical batteries, forming sustained procurement.
Catalyst and Reaction EngineeringTwo Core Technical Capabilities
The industrialization of SWCNTs has long faced two technical hurdles.
Catalysts determine material growth quality, while reaction engineering determines whether qualified products can be produced continuously and in large quantities.
Jucarbon Shengcai's technical team is structured around these two capabilities.
First is catalyst and material synthesis.
The company collaborates with teams from the Nanjing University Changzhou High-Tech Research Institute to develop SWCNTs.
The core team has long studied the growth mechanisms, structural control, catalysis, and macro-preparation of carbon-based nanomaterials. The chief scientist conducted postdoctoral research at the University of Tokyo, having published over 260 academic papers and filed over 70 Chinese invention patents, of which over 50 have been granted.
These scientific accumulations, ranging from nanomaterial growth mechanisms to macro-preparation, are highly relevant to the core challenges of SWCNT industrialization.
SWCNTs consist of only a single tube wall, making them particularly sensitive to catalyst particle size, activity, and growth conditions, which directly affect product diameter, structure, and consistency.
Jucarbon Shengcai has also developed its own achievements in SWCNT preparation technology.
In March this year, the company's invention patent application titled "A Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube and Its Preparation Method" was published.
The patent proposes mixing gaseous catalysts with gaseous carbon sources, promoting uniform SWCNT growth through high-temperature reactions, and reducing the formation of oligo-wall and multi-wall structures.
Product performance provides another verification.
According to Jucarbon Shengcai, the Raman G/D ratio of their batch SWCNT products typically reaches 70—80, with some higher-grade products exceeding 100.
The G/D ratio is an important indicator for evaluating the structural quality of carbon nanotubes. Benchmarking against high-end products requires comprehensive judgment combining purity, tube diameter, impurity levels, and cell performance.
Jucarbon Shengcai aimed at international high-end similar products from the start of R&D. A progress with greater industrial weight is that high-quality products have moved from the laboratory to continuous use in cells.
According to the company, their products have completed domestic substitution in high-performance power batteries of listed domestic companies, maintaining stable supply for over a year, achieving a significant leap from material R&D to actual commercial application.
Beyond material quality, manufacturing efficiency is also key to determining industrialization levels.
This involves the second capability: reaction engineering.
Jucarbon Shengcai's accumulation of technical capabilities in this area relies on Chen Qiang, Dean of the Nanjing University Changzhou High-Tech Research Institute.
Chen Qiang has long engaged in technology transfer and industrialization work, having won the Second Prize of the National Science and Technology Progress Award.
In 2006, he was dispatched by Nanjing University to establish the research institute in Changzhou. After years of development, the institute has introduced and incubated 62 innovative tech enterprises, four of which are listed, cumulatively undertaking over 300 enterprise technology breakthrough and service projects.
Long-term accumulation in technology transfer has provided strong support for the industrial scaling of Jucarbon Shengcai's SWCNTs.
Specifically regarding SWCNT production, the company adopts Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) processes.
High-temperature reactions at the thousand-degree Celsius level impose high requirements on thermal fields, airflow, catalyst supply, and product collection.
Jucarbon Shengcai has collaborated with professional equipment manufacturers to customize reaction equipment, focusing on key process requirements such as catalyst supply, dispersion control, and product collection.
Currently, five third-generation dual-tube reaction devices at Jucarbon Shengcai have achieved continuous production, yielding over 200 kilograms of SWCNT powder per month, capable of meeting market demand for over 50 tons of slurry.
From early single-tube devices to third-generation dual-tube reactors, the company has completed multiple rounds of equipment iteration.
The next step involves developing a new generation of multi-tube reactors to further enhance unit equipment output.
Multi-tube structures impose higher requirements on high-temperature thermal field uniformity, material supply, and energy consumption control. Miniaturized trials have been completed, and the project is currently in the engineering scale-up validation stage.
From the stable preparation of high-quality SWCNTs to the continuous iterative upgrade of reaction equipment, Jucarbon Shengcai is converting scientific research and engineering capabilities into industrially scalable mass production capacity.
From 5 Units to 20 LinesJucarbon Shengcai Accelerates Scale Supply
With demand for high-quality SWCNTs materializing faster, Jucarbon Shengcai is preparing to take an important step toward scale supply.
According to plans, the company will expand from existing five devices to approximately 20 production lines, forming an annual capacity of over 10 tons of high-quality SWCNT powder and over 2,500 tons of slurry.
Referencing the 2025 domestic SWCNT powder shipment volume, which just broke through 100 tons, the 10-ton level high-quality supply plan already carries significant industrial weight.
Existing third-generation dual-tube devices enable continuous production, allowing new capacity to advance along verified process routes.
Meanwhile, Jucarbon Shengcai is undergoing testing and certification by more leading domestic battery customers. According to the company, the comprehensive performance of their SWCNTs is comparable to international top-tier similar products, and some customers hope the company accelerates the supply of high-quality SWCNTs soon.
The company has its own business judgment regarding this expansion.
In the previous round of SWCNT expansion, hundred-ton capacity plans outpaced actual demand. Now, with the accelerated application of fast-charging power, high-performance small cylindrical cells, and silicon-based anodes, new procurement demand is being realized. Whether high-quality products can be stably produced and continuously delivered is becoming an important measure in the new round of industrial competition.
Two years ago, seven customers inquired about SWCNT supply sources on the same day. Today, Jucarbon Shengcai has seized the domestic substitution opportunity. Through collaborative efforts with customers, they have introduced high-quality SWCNTs into the high-performance cylindrical battery supply chain, forming stable mass production supply.
According to Jucarbon Shengcai's plan, the company currently roots itself in Changzhou, Jiangsu, leveraging the synergistic advantages of Nanjing University's research resources, Yangtze River Delta technical talent, and the battery industry chain. In the future, it will consider establishing production bases across multiple locations nationwide to better serve customers.
The next step involves planning for an annual capacity of over 100 tons of high-quality SWCNT powder and ten-thousand-ton level slurry.
As the SWCNT sector welcomes another wave of expansion, Jucarbon Shengcai has presented something more convincing than capacity plans: products, production lines, and orders.