1. Introduction of vitamin b1
Vitamin B1, also known as thiamine, is also known as anti-neuroinflammatory agent, divided into thiamine hydrochloride and thiamine mononitrate. It can promote energy metabolism, maintain the normal function of nerve tissue and heart muscle, protect the gastrointestinal tract, enhance appetite, promote the growth and development of animals and improve their immune function.
Vitamin B1 downstream is mainly used in feed additives, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, and food three fields, accounting for 37%, 51%, and 12% respectively, its additive in the downstream applications are relatively small, so the downstream demand is rigid.
1.1 Thiamine hydrochloride
Thiamine hydrochloride (also known as vitamin b1 hydrochloride, vitamin b1 HCl, CAS 67-03-8, molecular formula C12H17ClN4OS-HCl, molecular weight 337.27) is a white needle-like crystalline powder with a faint smell similar to rice bran, bitter taste, anhydrous dried product rapidly absorbs water in the air (4%). Its melting point is 246～250℃ and it’s stable to heat (170℃), easily soluble in water, slightly fused to ethanol, and insoluble in benzene and ether.
1.2 Thiamine mononitrate
Thiamine mononitrate (alias thiamine nitrate, vitamin B1 nitrate, CAS 532-43-4, molecular formula C12H17N5O4S molecular weight 327.37), is a chemical substance, white to slightly yellow crystalline or crystalline powder. Odorless or slightly peculiar odor, melting point 196~200℃ (decomposition), non-hygroscopic. Slightly soluble in water (its solubility is smaller than thiamine hydrochloride, 1g is soluble in about 35mL water), insoluble in ethanol and chloroform. Stable in air, more stable in neutral solution than in acidic solution (pH=4.0), and more stable than thiamine hydrochloride.
2. Vitamin b1 main manufacturers
At present, the main manufacturers of vitamin B1(thiamine Hcl and mononitrate) are Jiangxi Tianxin Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, Huazhong Pharmaceutical Company Limited, Brother Enterprises Holding Co., Ltd, Xinfa Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, and DSM. With a total annual production capacity of about 12,600 tons and the demand of about 9,000 tons, the CR4 reaches 93%, and the industry is highly concentrated with an oligopoly pattern.
In recent years, the vitamin B1 market pattern is stable, lacking new entrants to compete, and the concentration of the industry is gradually increasing. After the long-term market fluctuations in the past, coupled with the improvement of environmental protection requirements, the share of each manufacturer remains relatively balanced, and the market share and market position have basically formed a consensus, with a low degree of competition.
2.1 Jiangxi Tianxin Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd
Jiangxi Tianxin Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, established in September 2004, is a high-tech enterprise specializing in the production of vitamins. The company’s main products include vitamin B6, vitamin B1, folic acid, biotin, and vitamin D3, which are mainly used in the fields of API, food additives, and feed additives.
2.2 Huazhong Pharmaceutical Company Limited
Huazhong Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, located in Xiangyang City, Hubei Province, is a modern comprehensive pharmaceutical enterprise integrating R&D, production, and sales of pharmaceutical products. It is the first vitamin B1 raw material manufacturer in China, and the quality of its products meets the quality standards of CP, BP, USP, EP, and JP versions. They have also developed VB1 granules, VB1 derivatives, and vitamin b6 products.
2.3 Brother Enterprises Holding Co., Ltd
Brother Enterprises Holding Co., Ltd, founded in 1991 and headquartered in Haining, Zhejiang Province, has grown over the years into an international chemical group with four business divisions – dermatology, vitamins, fragrances, and APIs – and several wholly-owned subsidiaries, with professional production bases in Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, and Newcastle, South Africa, respectively.
2.4 Xinfa Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd
Xinfa Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, founded in 1998, is a high-tech private enterprise mainly producing feed additives, vitamins, raw materials for veterinary drugs, and pharmaceutical intermediates. It is located in Dongying City, Shandong Province, in the hinterland of the Yellow River Delta on the coast of the Bohai Sea. Its main product is vitamin b5-calcium pantothenate, with the second-largest production and market share in the world. It also produces vitamin b1, d3, etc.
3. Vitamin b1 manufacturing process
Vitamin B1 production mainly has the malononitrile route, acrylonitrile acetamide methyl pyrimidine route, and acrylonitrile formamide methyl pyrimidine route. Foreign commonly used malononitrile route, this route is brief, but the price of raw materials is expensive and high cost; the latter two routes are commonly used in China, acrylonitrile acetamide methyl pyrimidine route mild conditions, is commonly used in China, but the cost is higher, while acrylonitrile formamide methyl pyrimidine route is the latest route developed successfully in China in the past two years, although the route is longer, the cost is lower.
Ammonolysis–> Formylation–> Generation of sodium content–> Condensation–> Enamine–> Cyclization–> Pyrimidine–> Hydrolyzing–> Cyclization–> Thiothiamine–> Oxidation–> Thiamine mononitrate–> Conversion–> Thiamine hydrochloride
4. Summary
The major manufacturers of vitamin B1 are Jiangxi Tianxin Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, Huazhong Pharmaceutical Company Limited, Brother Enterprises Holding Co., Ltd, Xinfa Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, and DSM. The Vitamin B1 market pattern is stable, lack of new entrants to compete and low competition.
