Just jelly-like materials? Well, there is a new one that supports an elephant but goes squishy when it jumps off. The new IDTechEx reports, "Self-Healing Materials Markets 2022-2042" and "Hydrogel Markets in Agriculture, Industry, Energy, Electronics, Electrical, Consumer 2022-2042" have the big picture.

Gymnast of chemicals, the awesome hydrogel is a 3D network of hydrophilic polymers like a giant molecule that can swell in water and hold at least 10% of water while maintaining a well-defined structure. Medical hydrogels currently dominate hydrogel publicity, patents, and research but the rest will become a larger business 2022-2042.

Thursday 10 February 2022 - This webinar looks at hydrogels beyond the medical applications that currently dominate the publicity, patents and research. Come away aware that someone will make a new billion-dollar business out of this and greatly benefit society, from smart cities to ample food, water, and electricity with zero emissions and so much more.

The materials science industry is highly competitive. There are large changes in various sectors, such as an electric and autonomous future for vehicles, geopolitical & legislative developments, and new players offering innovative materials looking to gain market share. The key to future success will rely on commercializing R&D activity and remaining agile to market needs, two reasons that developing a materials informatics strategy is imperative.

Join the free webinar - Thursday 27 January 2022. What are the major printing technologies driving the 3D printing hardware market's growth? What are new emerging technologies to keep an eye on? Is the hardware market at a point of consolidation or expansion?

The mobility sector continues to see a rapid pace of change, enabled by technological leaps in the underlying componentry and materials, but there is still a long way to go. In this article Luke Gear, Principal Analyst at IDTechEx, explores six key future mobility trends, drawing from IDTechEx Subscription research.

Thursday 13 January 2022 - New Self-healing Materials Save Lives, Money, and the Planet. The webinar explains how this is a world of many materials including a lot of silicon polymers such as geopolymers and silicones. It involves many ionomers, hydrogels, polyurethanes, ionomers, epoxies and Diels-Alder polymers but much more besides.

Self-healing materials are a new megatrend. The need is massive, from saving trillions of dollars lost yearly by collapsing buildings and bridges to bionic man and woman living better and longer. In saving the planet and preserving resources, long life from self-healing beats recycling any day.

Smart buildings aim to bring digital technologies into the fabric of the building, rather than just to objects within it. They will utilize a wide range of emerging technologies, such as semi-transparent photovoltaics on windows, moisture sensors for leak detection, and printed heaters with wall panels.

Wednesday 8 December 2021 - How has COVID-19 affected the 3D printing industry? Is the industry already on the path to recovery, or is the pandemic a major setback to AM's progress? What do the IPOs, mergers, acquisitions, and SPAC-offerings mean for the future of 3D printing? and more.

Within this year of recovery, IDTechEx has noted the development and/or continuation of micro-trends within each major 3D printing subspecialty: polymer, ceramic, composite, and metal additive manufacturing. In this article, IDTechEx identifies and explains the micro-trends for each material specialty that are worth keeping an eye on going into 2022.

Thursday 9 December 2021 - Assessment of the key mergers and acquisitions; Important funding rounds across; Notable partnerships; Establishment and expansion of production facilities; Role in key application areas including electronic devices, energy storage and 3D printing; Progression in various fields of green technology

With the pandemic still raging, supply chain disruptions, the chip shortage, climate catastrophes, and geopolitical turbulence, it is safe to say 2021 has not been smooth sailing. The materials and chemical sector provides the backbone of every industry and remains under pressure from all these challenges. In this article, IDTechEx highlights the key news from their independent perspective on this crucial industry.

The massive new challenges of desertification, rising sea levels, starvation, increasingly violent weather, dysfunctional national governments and the accelerating move to cities can be tackled on a human scale.

2021 has been an exciting year for printed electronics, with multiple applications reaching commercial adoption and significant funds flowing into the sector. Even where technologies are not yet commercialized, companies are increasingly transitioning from developing their technology and producing speculative demonstration prototypes to development and qualification projects for specific customers.

Climate change is one of humanity's most pressing challenges. In an effort to accelerate global action in limiting temperature rises, international lawmakers, business leaders, scientists, and activists convened in Glasgow (U.K.) for the past two weeks in the UN's Climate Change Conference (COP26). In this article, IDTechEx examines three crucial technologies in the fight against climate change that saw advancements (or not) during this COP's proceedings.

Tuesday 16 November 2021 - An Array of Choices for Battery and Energy Storage Technology. Pros and cons of solid-state batteries compared with conventional lithium-ion batteries, the current market status, future trends, and pack design consideration; Special form factor enabled by solid-state batteries; and much more.

Wednesday 17 November 2021 - Over the last year, we've seen an increasing number of 5G consumer network rollouts and field testing around the world. This webinar discusses an overview of 5G development; 5G commercial deployment; an overview of 5G application; and much more.

The new need for massive amounts of delayed electricity will provide major new business for the mining and cement industries while helping them to clean up their act and generate new earning streams.

All major players in the automotive industry are racing to develop and deploy zero-emission vehicles: a tumultuous change in powertrain technology is underway. The new report from IDTechEx, "Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles 2022-2042", analyzes the role of fuel cells in on-road vehicles.