Trends in Smart Materials and Technologies Market

Materials are basic to every manufacturing process; the smarter they get, the better will be the product. Smart materials market deals with typically designed materials, whose physical properties can be altered through controlling its operational environment. Physical parameters, namely stress, temperature, moisture, pH, electric, and magnetic fields, are imposed upon these special materials to facilitate their restructuring. The topical developments in the smart material & technologies segment translates theoretical possibilities of material science to a different technical level, altogether. With these smart materials, theories that appeared as science-fiction a couple of decades back, is the materialized reality of modern world. 

Latest technological trends have surfaced from ongoing disquisition of existing materials. Shape-memory material & technology trend takes on the smart materials industry by wonder, given the amount of shape change that can be induced and recovered by simply changing the temperature. Materials that can heal small structural defects in themselves, or the self-healing materials, also have gained popularity in market avenues. Others, such as piezoelectric, magnetostrictive, thermoelectric, chromogenic, and elastomer materials, prevail in the sundry industrial applications. 

Read More about Smart Material Market

Analysts at Allied Market Research estimate the net value of the smart material market at around $72.63 billion from 2015 to 2022. During this period, the industry is expected to register its growth at a CAGR of 14.9%. Sustained progress will be maintained through strategic product development and business expansion. Smart materials & technologies, when implemented in complex technical systems, reduce their intricacies. Aerospace & defense, automotive, engineering, industrial, healthcare, and consumer electronics are the end-consumption segments in the industry. Its offerings are available under a vast range of smart metals & alloys, smart textiles, smart polymers, and smart fluids. The final products include transducers, actuators & motors, and structural materials.

Current trends in smart material market

Functional building blocks define the characteristic of a material. Developers, in their previous experiments, had been restricted in implementing multiple functional blocks in one material. Recently, a group of researchers at the Washington State University have introduced a breakthrough that can, quite literally, change the shape of the smart materials market. They have developed a one-of-its-kind, multifunctional substance, which has the ability to restructure its physical arrangement when exposed to heat or light. Their findings indicate that their photoresponsive liquid crystalline epoxy networks have three building blocks incorporated into it azobenzene chromophores, liquid crystals, and dynamic ester bonds. The group revels after the successful compilation of multiple intelligent functions, such as shape-memory behavior, photo-mechanical movement, and self-healing property, in one single material. Every time the material fold or unfolds, it remembers its original orientation and heals accordingly. First released in the Applied Materials & Interfaces segment of ACS Journal, this work is protected by provisionary patent. The research members suggest that their invention has possible applications in the aerospace technology. 

Intensive research in material sciences is bound to influence the scope for other segments. Innovative smart inorganic polymers, for instance, will altogether eliminate the need for polymer additives and plasticizers. 

Smart material, smart future

The smart materials industry awaits the 3rd International conference on Smart Materials & Structures to be held from March 20 to 22, 2017 at Orlando, U.S. by the Conference Series LLC. Field experts are expected to take the stage to deliver speeches about the latest trends and approaches to the smart materials. ‘The city beautiful’ would witness multiple events, conferences, symposiums, and workshops. Business owners and research scholars get a chance to exchange individual and organizational ideas. Inspired by the previous success of the 2nd International Conference conducted in 2016 during February 29 to March 02, 2016, the organizers look forward to extraordinary outcomes of the entire episode. This time, the theme of the conference has been finalized on “Expanding Novelties on Materials and Structures Around the Globe.” Over the course of the three-day conference, the main motive will focus on propagating known technologies and facilities. Participants intend to share their research, manufacturing, and commercial experiences for building a platform for mutual development.

The smart material market has exclusive investment plans for extended research and development activities in the smart materials & structures segment. Collaborative efforts from investigative institutions and manufacturers will aid the introduction of materials as solutions for various manufacturing needs. Stakeholders in the industry must plan their investment strategies accordingly to make most profit out of the results generated. 

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