High Temperature Grease Market Trends

Growth Drivers

• Growing automotive industry poses need for high temperature grease: The U.S. is among the biggest auto markets and in 2022, light vehicle sales surpassed 11 million units. In 2023, international automakers manufactured 4.9 million vehicles in the country. In 2023, the U.S. light vehicle exports were 1.6 million units, 160,000 medium heavy trucks, and USD 93.7 billion worth of auto parts and components. Light weight truck market share was 79.3% in 2022, a 3.4% surge from 2021. The sector brings in USD 1 trillion, equivalent to 4.8% of the U.S. GDP each year (contributing USD 280 billion in local, state, and federal tax revenues).  The U.S. affiliates of most of its foreign-owned automotive businesses support 500,000 U.S. jobs, and the total FDI in the country’s automotive industry was USD 195.6 billion in 2023.
  
  China continues to dominate the global vehicle industry in terms of both manufacturing output and annual sales, with domestic capacity anticipated to cross 35 million vehicles by the end of 2025. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology data suggests that vehicle sales in 2021 was 26 million, constituting 21.48 million units of passenger vehicles, up by 7.1% from the previous year, whereas the commercial sales were 4.79 million. U.S.-made automobiles exported to China face a 15% tariff under the U.S.-China Phase One Trade Agreement, offering opportunities for U.S. exporters.

• Semiconductor manufacturing sets a significant demand for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl PFAS-based lubricants: About 1 trillion semiconductors were sold worldwide in 2023. High demand has provided an impetus to investments to boost chip manufacturing capacity. Owing to the CHIPS and Science Act, the U.S. is projected to garner a larger private investment share in the coming years. In August 2024, several players in the semiconductor ecosystem announced over 90 new projects in the country, which cumulatively reached USD 450 billion in funding across 28 states. SIA estimates that the U.S. share in chip manufacturing (less than 10nm) will account for 28% of global capacity by the end of 2032, capturing 28% of the global CapEx between 2024 and 2032.
  
  In March 2025, SIA disclosed that worldwide semiconductor sales crossed USD 56 billion in January, a 17.9% surge from January 2024’s USD 47.9 billion. Regionally, Y-O-Y sales were up in the U.S. (50.7%), APAC (9.0%), Japan (5.7%), and China (6.5%) but down in Europe (-6.4%). Semiconductor production equipment must operate at extreme environmental conditions such as high temperatures, vacuum conditions, and high UV-light irradiation, thereby requiring high temperature oils, greases, and lubricants to protect moving parts from excessive wear and tear.
  
  The aggressive chemistries used in the process include oxidizers, caustics such as sulfuric acid, tetramethylammonium hydroxide, and hydrogen peroxide, strong acids, reactive gas radicals including fluorine gas and ionized chlorine, and pyrophoric gases comprising phosphine, silane, and arsine. With their superior tribological and rheological properties, PTFE and PFPE are widespread in such high-speed and high temperature use cases.PFAS grease is typically made from polytetrafluoroethylene thickeners and/or micropowders, poly chlorotrifluoroethylene (PCTFE), and synthetic hydrocarbons with PTFE micropowders, and multiply-alkylated cyclopentane (MAC).

Challenges

• Extreme operating conditions: High-temperature greases are designed to withstand extreme temperatures, pressures, and other harsh operating conditions. However, in certain industries or applications, the conditions might be exceptionally severe, leading to accelerated degradation of the grease and reduced equipment performance. Developing greases that can effectively handle such extreme conditions while maintaining their lubrication properties is a constant challenge for manufacturers.