同样叫再生PEI，黑色料两万二，兰色料三万八，一吨差一万六。摆在料袋上都印着再生PEI四个字，买回去的东西根本不是一回事。
差在哪？等级。
做半导体测试座的、做耐高温连接器的、做工业绝缘件的，嘴上都说自己用的是再生PEI，有人拿黑色一级料打外观不敏感的内部结构件，有人拿兰色一级料去配下游特定颜色。
更有意思的是，这行的国标还没出PEI专项。现行的GB/T 40006系列，最新只发到第.13部分聚苯醚PPE，2025年8月发布、2026年2月才实施；PEI这个品种，公开渠道到现在连个分册影子都没有，只能去执行.1通则。
国标缺位，暗号就满天飞。分不清等级就下单，跟闭着眼睛扫货没区别。这篇把再生PEI的分级江湖拆开揉碎，看完至少不会当韭菜。
先说清楚再生PEI按什么规矩来。聚醚酰亚胺PEI，原生牌号叫ULTEM，是特种工程塑料里耐温那一档的主力。国标这边，现行的GB/T 40006.1-2021《塑料 再生塑料 第1部分：通则》是它主要能挂靠的册子，术语、分类命名、技术要求、可追溯性都从这里面出。这通则还有条红线：医疗废物来源的料明确不适用——这条先记死，医疗级再生PEI国内基本没有合法货源。
那PEI没专项分册，行业靠什么分级？说白了就是四把尺子：纯度品级、改性方向、加工形态、颜色。四把尺子量出来的等级，才是报价单上两万二和三万八的差距来源。
还有一把量化的硬尺子，叫MFR。PEI的熔体流动速率测试条件固定在337℃、6.6公斤砝码——这个温度比通用料高出一大截，因为PEI本身就得这么高的温度才化得开。原生ULTEM 1000的基准MFR大约是9克每十分钟；到了再生料这一步，市售商品料普遍升到20附近。数字往上走，说明分子链在反复加工里断了、分子量下来了。你品你细品：以后报价单光写“再生PEI”四个字的，你就让他报MFR，报不出来的，货大概率是凑出来的。
品级是进门头一道筛子
特级、一级、二级、三级，是再生塑料通行的纯度分级，报价单上实际用的多是一级和三级。
一级料来自工业水口料、电子厂干净的边角和流道，成分单一、灰分低；三级料就杂了，混了各种回收壳子和异料，灰分高、料次多，性能跟着回退。
报价单上这串你得看懂：黑增强20%报两万六，备注却写三级——听着矛盾，实际是说这批玻纤增强料在回收过程里纤维被剪短了、增强效果打折，品级从一级掉到三级，价格自然压不上去。这就是玻纤回收降级的直接体现。
为什么品级这么值钱？因为PEI跟PSU、PES这些料外观颜色都差不多，回收时极易串料。分选不干净，灰分上去了，强度和尺寸就跟着飘。你拿三级料去打要求批批一致的件，今天合格明天退货，客户退到你怀疑人生。
下单先问品级：一级还是三级，敢不敢附灰分检测。问清楚这一句，比砍价五百块管用得多。
改性方向决定身价
品级定了干不干净，真正把一吨料价格拉开的，是改性方向。
纯树脂是通用底子，打一般耐热结构件；往刚性走就上玻纤，GF10、GF20、GF30、GF40，对标原生ULTEM的2xxx系列；再往高走有碳纤增强、导电抗静电、加PTFE的耐磨级，还有专门给3D打印用的9085级。
这里有个容易被忽略的点：玻纤增强料回收后，破碎和多次挤出造粒过程中纤维受剪切会变短、长径比下降，增强效果逐次打折。要把刚性拉回目标区，得补纤——重新补入短玻纤，把纤维长度分布补回来。补多少、补得准不准，全看供应商对料源的控制力。报价单上那条黑增强20%卖两万六却定三级，正说明纤维回收断裂这件事，行内人认的就是这么实在。
苏州有家做工业伺服连接器壳体的客户，之前从国内小作坊拼所谓GF20再生PEI，号称都是20%玻纤，结果每车料玻纤含量从14%飘到25%，打出来的壳体和端子配合间隙批间差拉到12%，客户验厂直接亮红灯，良率掉到七成。后来走的是东南亚多国直采的固定料源——越南、泰国、马来几个厂的PEI水口料定点收，每车报灰分和实测玻纤含量，批次之间GF值波动压在两个百分点以内，补纤按实测值精准补，良率重新拉到95%以上，过厂内老化试验没再翻过车。
说白了，多国直采不是个营销词——料源固定了，每车料的玻纤含量才不会像开盲盒。批次可控、品级稳定、玻纤含量精准，这三个词落到量产线上，就是连接器不用反复调机、不用停线等料。
ULTEM牌号里藏着对标密码
报价单上除了品级和改性方向，还有一串代号你得看懂：1000、1010、2210、2300、2400、9085、HU1000。
这串数字，就是原生标杆SABIC ULTEM家族的暗号。1000是通用基准款，MFR大约9；1010是高流动款，充填薄壁件更顺；2210对标的是20%玻纤增强，2300是30%，2400是40%——2xxx这一整段，本质就是一张玻纤含量表。9085专给3D打印的FDM工艺用，HU1000是医疗级那一路。再生料行业怎么命名？简单粗暴，按对标原牌号叫——你跟供货商说我要“对标2210的再生料”，行内立刻懂你要的是GF20。
这背后还有段历史值得知道：ULTEM是1982年美国GE塑料商业化的牌号，2007年GE把塑料业务整个卖给了SABIC，这个牌子就姓SABIC了。所以市面上你听到的ULTEM，追根溯源都是这一条线。国产这边呢？金发科技2025年12月才上了一条千吨级的PEI中试线，到现在还是小批量阶段，规模化产能谈不上。也就是说，原生标杆长期看还是SABIC说了算，再生料这边反而是全球水口料在余姚、慈溪集散——你手里的再生颗粒，对标的正是这些原生牌号。
真正要盯的，是你手里的再生料能不能把对标牌号该有的刚性和尺寸打出来，而不是袋子上印的是谁的名字。
加工形态和颜色是最后两道关
品级、改性、牌号都问清了，还剩两把尺子：加工形态和颜色。
加工形态上，再生PEI九成以上是注塑级，挤出级量很少，3D打印级就是9085那一类专用料。你拿注塑级去硬挤厚壁管，料性根本不配合。
颜色这一关更直接。黑色是当仁不让的主力，遮盖力强、料源广，两万二到两万五一吨这个区间；灰色两万六，做电子结构件的爱用；兰色最贵，三万八一吨——着色鲜艳度要求高、分拣严，对应下游特定配色，稀缺性溢价；透明的琥珀本色再生料，行内都说有价无市，报价单上根本没人挂这个颜色，因为干净的本色水口料太少。
把MFR再强调一遍：9是原生ULTEM 1000的基准，20是再生料的常态。这个数字，是整张报价单上最不该被忽略的品质量化指标。
五个细分方向，一句话讲清
黑色一级：料源广、价格实在，做对外观无要求的耐热内部结构件、底座和骨架。
黑色光亮级：表面光泽好一档，做看得见但不挑色的外观结构件，两万五一吨。
兰色一级：分拣严、颜色匀，做要配下游特定蓝色的电子件，三万八那一档。
灰色一级：颜色中性、刚性足，做工业连接器、半导体测试座这类电子结构件。
黑增强三级：玻纤回收后定三级，刚性回退，打不挑冲击的增强结构件，别拿去扛主力。
写在最后：八条选料口诀
1. 问国标：PEI没有专项分册，只走GB/T 40006.1通则，医疗废物来源直接排除；
2. 问MFR：337℃、6.6公斤条件下测，9是原生基准，20上下是再生常态；
3. 问品级：一级成分单一灰分低，三级杂料多性能回退，别拿三级钱差买一级活；
4. 问改性：纯树脂、玻纤GF10到GF40、碳纤、导电、耐磨、3D打印，方向定身价；
5. 问GF含量：回收后纤维变短，问清楚补纤量和实测玻纤百分比；
6. 问牌号：1000通用、1010高流动、2210到2400对应GF20到GF40、9085打印级；
7. 问颜色：黑色便宜灰色中、兰色最贵、琥珀本色稀缺有价无市；
8. 问批次：敢不敢附每车灰分和GF检测，不敢给的就绕着走。
写在最后：再生PEI的等级，本质是纯度品级、改性方向、ULTEM对标牌号和颜色四把尺子量出来的标价。国标还没给PEI立专项，这套暗号就是当前主要的分级语言——你不学会，就只能替别人的学费买单。宁波市科隆新材料有限公司做改性PEI和再生料选型多年，料源走东南亚多国直采，批次可控、品级稳定、玻纤含量精准，类似工业连接器、测试座这类要批批一致的案子每年处理几十起，说白了就是帮你把等级和玻纤含量在量产之前钉死。
Also called recycled PEI, black material 22,000 yuan, blue color material 38,000 yuan, 16,000 yuan difference per ton. The material bags all have the four words 'recycled PEI' printed on them, but the products you buy are completely different.
What's the difference? Grade.
Those making semiconductor test sockets, high-temperature connectors, and industrial insulators all claim to use recycled PEI. Some use black first-grade material for internal structural parts that aren't visually sensitive, some use blue first-grade material to match specific downstream colors.
What's even more interesting is that the national standard in this industry hasn't even released a PEI special yet. The current GB/T 40006 series only has the latest issue up to Part 13 of the polyphenylene ether PPE, which will be released in August 2025 and implemented in February 2026; For PEI, there hasn't even been a single volume of public channels so far, so it can only be implemented according to the .1 general rule.
National standards are missing, so codes are everywhere. If you can't tell the grade, you place an order—it's no different from blindly buying goods. This article breaks down the grading world of recycled PEI, so at least after reading it, you won't be treated like a chives.
First, clarify what rules recycled PEI follows. Polyetherimide PEI, with its original grade called ULTEM, is the main ingredient in the temperature-resistant category among special engineering plastics. On the national standard side, the current GB/T 40006.1-2021 "Plastics, Recycled Plastics Part 1: General Rules" is the main booklet it can rely on, with terminology, classification and naming, technical requirements, and traceability all derived from it. This general has a red line: the source material for medical waste is clearly not applicable—remember this first, there is basically no legal source of medical-grade recycled PEI domestically.
So PEI has no dedicated volumes, so what does the industry classify it? Simply put, it's four standards: purity grade, modification direction, processing form, and color. The grades measured by these four standards are the source of the difference between 22,000 and 38,000 yuan on the quotation.
There's also a hard quantitative measure called MFR. The melt flow rate test for PEI is fixed at 337°C and 6.6 kg weight—this temperature is much higher than general materials, because PEI itself requires such high temperatures to melt. The base MFR for virgin ULTEM 1000 is about 9 grams every ten minutes; At the recycled material stage, commercial materials generally rise to around 20. The higher the number, the more molecular chains break and the molecular weight decreases through repeated processing. Think carefully: in the future, if the quote only says "recycled PEI," you can have them quote MFR. If it can't be quoted, the product will most likely be made up.
grade is the first sieve at the door .
Premium, Grade 1, Grade 2, and Grade 3 are the standard purity grading for recycled plastics. The quotation mostly uses Grade 1 and Grade 3.
Grade 1 material comes from industrial sprue material and clean corners and runners from electronics factories, with a single composition and low ash content; Grade 3 material is mixed, mixed with various recycled shells and foreign materials, resulting in high ash content and many material grades, so performance declines accordingly.
You need to understand this string on the quotation: 26,000 RMB for 20% black reinforcement, but the note says Grade 3—sounds contradictory, but in reality, this batch of glass fiber reinforcement was cut short during the recycling process, reducing the reinforcement effect, causing the grade to drop from Grade 1 to Grade 3, so the price naturally couldn't be pushed up. This is a direct reflection of downgrading in fiberglass recycling.
Why is grade so valuable? Because PEI, PSU, and PES all look and color similar, making it easy to transfer material during recycling. If sorting isn't done properly, the ash content increases, and strength and size become unstable. If you take grade 3 material and demand consistent batches, if it meets the standards today and returns tomorrow, the customer will question your life.
When ordering, ask about grade 1 or grade 3, and do you dare to add ash content testing? Clarifying this question is much more effective than bargaining for 500 yuan.
Modification direction determines value
Whether the grade is set cleanly is what really sets the price per ton of material apart is the modification direction.
Pure resin is a universal base and is used for general heat-resistant structural parts; For rigidity, use glass fiber: GF10, GF20, GF30, GF40, benchmarking the 2xxx series of native ULTEM; Further up are carbon fiber reinforcement, conductive anti-static, PTFE-added wear resistance grades, and a 9085 grade specifically for 3D printing.
There's an easily overlooked point here: after glass fiber reinforcement is recycled, during crushing and multiple extrusion granulations, fibers become shorter and the length-to-diameter ratio decreases, reducing the reinforcement effect step by step. To bring rigidity back to the target zone, fibers must be supplemented—refill short fiberglass to restore fiber length distribution. How much and how well to supplement depends entirely on the supplier's control over the material source. The quote says the black reinforced strip sold for 26,000 at 20% but is rated Grade 3, which shows that fiber recycling breakage is a matter of industry insiders who see it as this straightforward.
Suzhou, a client specializing in industrial servo connector housings previously sold so-called GF20 recycled PEI from small domestic workshops, claiming it was 20% glass fiber. However, the glass fiber content per batch dropped from 14% to 25%, and the gap between the fit and terminals in the hammered shell and terminal fit was pushed to 12%. The client's factory inspection immediately triggered a red flag, and the yield dropped to 70%. Later, we switched to fixed sources directly sourced from multiple Southeast Asian countries—PEI sprue material from factories in Vietnam, Thailand, and Malaysia is received at designated locations. Each batch reports ash content and measured fiberglass content, with GF values fluctuating within two percentage points between batches. Fiber supplementation is precisely supplemented based on measured values, yield rates are raised back to over 95%, and no more failures after in-plant aging tests.
To put it bluntly, multi-country direct procurement is not just a marketing phrase—once the material source is fixed, the fiberglass content per batch won't feel like a blind box. Batch controllability, stable grade, and precise fiberglass content—these three words fall on the mass production line: connectors don't have to be repeatedly adjusted or stop for materials.
ULTEM grade hides the benchmark code
Besides grade and modification direction, there's a string of codes you need to understand: 1000, 1010, 2210, 2300, 2400, 9085, HU1000.
This string of numbers is the code code for the native SABIC ULTEM family. 1000 is the universal benchmark, with MFR around 9; 1010 is the high-flow model, making it easier to fill thin-walled parts; 2210 is for 20% glass fiber reinforced, 2300 is 30%, 2400 is 40%—the whole 2xxx segment is essentially a glass fiber content chart. 9085 is specifically for 3D printing FDM processes, while HU1000 is medical-grade. How is the recycled materials industry named? Simply put, it's called the original grade—if you tell suppliers you want to "compete with 2210 recycled material," insiders immediately understand you're looking for GF20.
There's a story behind this worth knowing: ULTEM is a commercialized plastic brand from GE in the US in 1982. In 2007, GE sold its entire plastics business to SABIC, so the brand took the SABIC name. So the ULTEM you hear on the market traces its origins to this line. What about the domestic side? Kingfa Technology only launched a 1,000-ton PEI pilot line in December 2025, and it's still in the small batch stage, so large-scale capacity is not yet realized. In other words, in the long run, SABIC still calls the shots on the original benchmark. For recycled materials, it's actually global Shuikou material distributed in Yuyao and Cixi—the recycled pellets you have are benchmarked against these original grades.
What you really need to watch is whether the recycled material in your hands can deliver the rigidity and dimensions required by the benchmark grade, not whose name is printed on the bag.
Processing type and color are the final two hurdles
Grade, modification, and grade have all been clarified, leaving only two measuring sticks: processing type and color.
In terms of processing form, over 90% recycled PEI is injection grade, with very little extrusion grade; 3D printing grade is just 9085 specialized materials. If you use injection grade to force-squeeze thick-walled tubes, the material properties simply don't match.
The color test is even more direct. Black is the undisputed mainstay, with strong coverage and wide material supply, priced between 22,000 and 25,000 per ton; Gray is 26,000 yuan, favored by electronic structural components; Blue is the most expensive, 38,000 per ton—requires high coloring vibrancy and strict sorting, corresponding to specific downstream color combinations, with a scarcity premium; Transparent natural amber recycled material, known in the industry as having a price but no market, is rarely listed on quotations because clean natural sprue material is scarce
Emphasize MFR again: 9 is the benchmark for original ULTEM 1000, 20 is the norm for recycled materials. This number is the most important quality indicator that should not be overlooked on the entire quotation.
Five subcategories, explained in one sentence
Black Grade 1: Wide material sources, reasonable price, making heat-resistant internal structural parts, bases, and frames without appearance requirements.
Black Bright Grade: Surface gloss is a tier higher, making visible but color-free structural parts, 25,000 per ton.
Blue Grade 1: Strict sorting, uniform color, making electronic parts that need to be paired with specific downstream blue, the 38,000 price range.
Gray Level 1: Neutral color, sufficient rigidity, used for industrial connectors, semiconductor test sockets, and other electronic structural components.
Black Enhancement Level 3: After fiberglass recycling, set to grade 3, rigidity reset, impact resistant to impact. Reinforced structural parts should not be used as the main force.
Final note: Eight material selection tips
1. Ask national standards: PEI has no special volumes, only follows GB/T 40006.1 general rule, directly excluding medical waste sources;
2. Ask MFR: Measured at 337°C and 6.6 kg, 9 is the native reference, around 20 is the normal regeneration state;
3. Ask about grade: Grade 1 has a single composition and low ash content; grade 3 mixed materials have many performance drops. Don't spend the price difference of grade 3 on grade 1 work;
4. Ask about modification: pure resin, glass fiber GF10 to GF40, carbon fiber, conductive, wear-resistant, 3D printing, and pricing based on direction;
5. Ask about GF content: after recycling, the fiber shortens; ask clearly about the fiber supplementation amount and measured glass fiber percentage;
6. Ask grade: 1000 general, 1010 high flow, 2210 to 2400 correspond to GF20 to GF40, 9085 printing grade;
7. Ask about color: black is cheap, gray is the most expensive, blue is the most expensive, natural amber is rare and hard to sell;
8. Ask about batch: Do you dare to include ash content and GF testing for each car? If you don't dare to give it, just avoid it.
Final note: The grade of recycled PEI is essentially a price measured by four standards: purity grade, modification direction, ULTEM label, grade, and color. The national standard hasn't set up a special PEI project yet; this set of codes is the main grading language — if you don't learn it, you'll have to pay for others' tuition. Ningbo Kelong New Materials Co., Ltd. has been selecting modified PEI and recycled materials for many years, sourcing directly from multiple Southeast Asian countries. Batch control, stable grade, and precise glass fiber content are handled. Cases like industrial connectors and test sockets that require consistent batches are handled dozens of cases annually. In short, they help you nail the grade and glass fiber content before mass production
