Lightweighting

Aerogels are a class of advanced porous materials with a huge amount of potential. However, despite being discovered back in the 1930s, this potential has never turned to a booming commercial reality. Since the turn of the century there has been significant growth, but the industry has once again stalled before greater growth.

3D Printing of composites is becoming an increasingly explored commercial opportunity. Approaching this from two directions: the 3D Printing industry are looking for functional enhancements to assist industrial uptake and meanwhile the traditional composites industry is looking at ways to allow more design freedom, accelerate time to market, and reduce the costs for low-production volume.

3D printing is rapidly reaching industrial commercialisation in numerous sectors; IDTechEx forecast that the total market will be worth $22bn by 2028. One of the key features is the design freedom this technology enables where, alongside other functional advantages, a major opportunity is in lightweighting.

In-mold electronics (IME) is a process of integrating printed decorations and electronic circuitry with thermoforming and molding.

Advancements in material science and material processing will always play a central role in any technological progression. IDTechEx has been providing leading market analysis on a broad range of advanced materials and their technology analysts have given their pick of the key news stories from 2018.

Technology analyst Dr Bryony Core reports on her findings at the IDTechEx Show! Santa Clara 2018

2018 saw a significant step for aerogels in consumer electronics - but what is an aerogel? The Dell XPS 13 launched at CES 2018 and included the use of a material called silica aerogel for improved thermal performance. Aerogels are often dubbed "space-age technology" with most internet searches directing the reader towards use cases in the NASA stardust probe and Mars Rover, but the history, material diversity, and commercial status are very different.

IDTechEx CEO, Raghu Das gives an overview on what to expect at the IDTechEx Show! next month in Santa Clara.

Olympian Sportsman, KONE, Jabil and BYD feature as Cornerstones of the IDTechEx Show!

IDTechEx attended Aluminium 2018 at the Düsseldorf Messe, Germany. This event reaches nearly 30,000 attendees and covers the complete aluminium supply chain.