Dai-Cellulose's Cellulose Acetate (TAC) Business Wins 'Cellulose Society Technical Award'

Dai-Cellulose Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Kita-ku, Osaka; President and CEO: Yasuhiro Sakaki) has jointly received the 2025 Cellulose Society Technical Award with Fujifilm Holdings Corporation (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Teiichi Goto, hereinafter 'Fujifilm') on June 1, 2026.

This award recognizes the significant contributions made by the research and development efforts of both companies. Fujifilm manufactures TAC (Triacetyl cellulose) films using Dai-Cellulose's TAC as the primary raw material, which has greatly enhanced the performance and market expansion of liquid crystal displays (LCDs) and organic EL displays (OLEDs), thereby contributing to society. The Cellulose Society has acknowledged these achievements.

The award ceremony and award lecture will be held during the 33rd Annual Meeting of the Cellulose Society at Fukagawa no Mori Art Theater (Fuchu City, Tokyo) on July 9, 2026.

## Overview of Research and Development

TAC film has traditionally been widely used as a photographic film base. Recognizing early on that the optical properties of TAC film influence display quality aspects such as viewing angles in LCDs and OLEDs, Dai-Cellulose and Fujifilm focused on using TAC film as a key optical film material—specifically, the 'polarizer'—and successively developed various TAC films tailored to different display technologies.

One crucial optical property affecting display quality is retardation (phase difference), the phase shift that occurs when light passes through a material. To control this, the companies reviewed film designs including the molecular structure of TAC. Furthermore, they innovated production technologies to ensure stable supply of high-quality products.

A particularly critical issue in expanding viewing angles for LCDs and OLEDs is light leakage in black display. Light passing obliquely through the cell generates phase differences contrary to the cell design, causing black to appear non-black. This problem is resolved by using TAC film to apply an opposite phase difference. However, since the required phase difference varies by display type, different TAC designs are needed accordingly.

## Award Details

Product and technological development of triacetyl cellulose film for displays

Award Recipients (Affiliation and Name):

1) Yuya Ashisu 2) Masahiko Suzuki 3) Eiichiro Ami 4) Nobutaka Fukagawa 5) Yoshiaki Suzuki

1) Dai-Cellulose Co., Ltd., Leader, Cellulose Group, Technical Solution Center, Materials SBU

2) Dai-Cellulose Co., Ltd., Member, Intellectual Property Solution Group, Intellectual Property Center

3) Fujifilm Holdings Corporation, Senior Expert, Advanced Functional Materials Business Division

4) Fujifilm Holdings Corporation, Contract Researcher, Advanced Functional Materials Development Center

5) Fujifilm Holdings Corporation, Technology Manager, Materials Production Division

## Terminology Explanation

TAC (Triacetyl cellulose)

TAC is a type of cellulose acetate derived from cellulose, the main component of wood. It refers to cellulose in which approximately 2.9 of the three hydroxyl groups in each monomer unit are acetylated. In 1954, responding to Fujifilm's request, Dai-Cellulose developed and industrialized TAC to achieve flame retardancy for motion picture film, which had previously been highly flammable when made from celluloid.

TAC's unique property in controlling retardation (phase difference) affecting display quality

Polymeric compounds formed into films generally have linear molecular structures, resulting in different properties along the longitudinal and transverse molecular axes. However, TAC molecules possess unique characteristics. Through continuous research, it was confirmed that TAC exhibits a birefringence value near zero—the difference in longitudinal and transverse characteristics of molecular electron vibrations, which greatly affects retardation (phase difference), a key optical property in display quality. Moreover, by controlling its chemical structure, the birefringence value of TAC can be finely adjusted.

These insights and technologies have been applied to TAC films for display devices.

A series of research and development outcomes were rapidly implemented into mass production equipment through the company's proprietary 'Intellectual Integrated Production System,' created by the 'Dai-Cellulose-style production innovation.'