Self-healing Materials Market

Market Overview

The global self-healing materials market size was valued at USD 1.25 billion in 2021. It is projected to reach USD 9.67 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 25.52% during the forecast period (2022–2030).

Self-healing materials with the inherent capacity to self-repair have increased substantially in recent years. In the context of composites, the most effective intrinsic self-healing materials have been thermally reparable materials based on reversible polymerization methods. Self-healing materials have significant potential for sophisticated engineering systems, and these systems adapt nonlinearly and productively to environmental stimuli without external intervention.

Self-healing technology and its science have advanced quickly, creating new self-healing polymers, polymer blends, polymer composites, and smart materials. Due to their outstanding qualities, self-healing materials have applications in numerous industries, including medicinal, electrical, aerospace, and coatings. The precision and design of self-healing materials are crucial for commercial manufacturing in various applications.

Market Dynamics

Global Self-Healing Materials Market Drivers

Repair and Restoration of Tiny Spaces without Human Intervention to Aid Growth

Self-healing materials contain microcapsules that rupture when exposed to mechanical injury, releasing healing chemicals at the damaged site. These agents polymerize and combine to restore structural and functional integrity by repairing the damage. Microcapsules are designed to withstand the production process and consumption of the chemicals in their intended application. The future growth of the market for self-healing materials is projected to be significantly influenced by the ability of these materials to reduce the maintenance costs necessary to repair the damage. The utilization of self-healing mortar and cement in the building and construction industry will raise demand during the forecast period.

Knowledge Concerning Rapid Healing Time to Boost Market Progress

Developing self-healing polymeric materials has constantly focused on science and materials engineering R&D specialists. Self-conductive materials are electronic or bioelectric materials produced by incorporating reversible linkages into conductive polymers and conductive fillers into self-healing polymers. NASA has utilized various self-healing methods for wiring structures and aeronautical engineering, with good outcomes and no scarring after healing. Reportedly, the average recovery time for self-healing systems is between 15 and 20 seconds. Utilizing the viscoelastic features of materials at high temperatures, NASA has created materials with significantly faster healing times for aerospace, rotorcraft, aviation, and military ballistic applications.

Global Self-Healing Materials Market Restraints

Constrained Self-Repair Mechanism to Restrict Market Growth

The minuscule size of the encapsulated healing ingredients prevents a compromise of the material's overall dependability. Due to the small size of the capsule, the amount of healing agents in the contents is limited, ultimately limiting the amount of damage that the healing agent can repair. Despite their high elasticity, high elastic polymers cannot always endure pressure, e.g., microcapsules cannot resist a great deal of external force. Due to the limited microcapsule holding capacity of materials and the irreversible nature of capsule rupture, it is anticipated that the ability to repair the material will be limited.

Global Self-Healing Materials Market Opportunities

Expansion of Global Construction Industry to Spur Market Opportunities

Concrete is a common material employed in building and construction projects. It is utilized extensively in constructing infrastructures, including dams, ports, storage tanks, roadways, tunnels, and subways. Despite being tough and resilient, it has a high propensity to develop cracks, allowing numerous hostile chemicals and other substances to penetrate. These fissures and the deposition of chemicals into cracks cause infrastructure damage and diminish its durability. Self-healing procedures can repair cracks instantly since the self-healing process permits rapid therapy. Adoption of these cutting-edge technologies will drive market expansion throughout the forecast period. In a growing economy like India, one of the primary driving factors is the expansion of public and private infrastructure construction.

Government programs such as the Make in India program bolster domestic manufacturing processes and facilitate the construction industry's access to raw resources. Due to its durability and extended lifespan in infrastructure, the product has multiple applications, which would benefit the construction industry. In addition, the growing use of CMCs, composites, and polymer-based materials in construction will propel the industry forward.

Segmental Analysis

The global self-healing materials market is segmented by product, application, and technology.

On the Basis of Product

Based on product, the market is segmented into concrete, coatings, polymers, asphalt, fiber-reinforced composites, ceramic, and metals.

The concrete category dominates the market for self-healing materials due to its functional characteristics, which include high strength, minimal shrinkage and creep, durability, and cost-effectiveness. The expansion of self-healing coatings is primarily attributable to the expanding use of these goods in the industrial sector, particularly in the automotive and aerospace industries. Several industries utilize these coatings, including the machinery manufacturing, automotive, oil and gas, marine, aerospace, and consumer products sectors. Incorporating self-healing technology into the road building and maintenance process has enormous potential for developing a novel material-engineered technology. This method reduces the unavoidable premature deterioration of asphalt pavements and the number of natural resources required to maintain road networks. Additionally, it contributes to decreasing CO2 emissions and improves road safety.

On the Basis of Technology

Based on technology, the market is divided into reversible polymers, microencapsulation, shape-memory materials, and biological material systems.

The reversible polymers category led the market for self-healing materials due to its widespread application across industries, particularly in the medical sector. In addition, the expanding elderly population is anticipated to stimulate market expansion. SMASH (Shape-memory Assisted Self-healing) coatings are manufactured using shape memory polymers. These surfaces aid in the structural repair of corroded surfaces and restore their resistance to corrosion. Due to its capacity to repair polymeric composites that mechanical and chemical processes have damaged, the demand for microencapsulation technology is anticipated to increase in the future years.

On the Basis of Application

Based on application, the market is divided into Energy Generation, Construction, Transportation Electronics and Semiconductors, and Medical.

The building and construction sector dominates the market for self-healing materials during the forecast period. Due to the increase in construction activities in China and India, the demand for construction-related products is anticipated to increase significantly during the projected period. The rising socio-economic necessity to construct high-tech infrastructure and buildings in emerging economies of the Asia Pacific and Latin America is anticipated to bolster the development of the construction industry, thereby positively impacting market growth over the forecast period. The automotive and transportation industries have also seen an increased demand for self-healing materials. Electronics conglomerates such as Samsung and Apple have promoted using self-healing materials in mobiles, laptops, and desktops, which is anticipated to increase product demand.

Regional Analysis

The global self-healing materials market is segmented into four regions, namely North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and LAMEA.

Europe dominates the self-healing materials market during the forecast period. Rising consumer spending and purchasing power, along with the rapid expansion of multinational corporations, particularly in France and Italy, are expected to drive industry growth. Asia-Pacific is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 30.5% during the forecast period. The primary reasons sustaining the robust regional economy are the main reasons for the robust regional economy are excellent industrialization, a dense population, and a rise in foreign direct investments in the automobile and electronics industries.

Europe and North America are expanding their manufacturing facilities and relocating their production units to the developing economies of Southeast Asia to grab a significant client base. To enhance sales and profitability, medium-sized companies diversify their product lines by including new features as previous ones become obsolete.

Recent Developments

• In June 2022, Dow spotlighted silicone solutions for transportation and consumer applications at Silicone Expo 2022.
• In June 2022, Dow’s recyclable packaging solution is certified to reduce 35% of life cycle carbon emissions.
• In March 2022, Covestro pioneers the supply of renewable TDI.
• In June 2022, Michelin Group, Mobility solutions to guarantee access to essential services.