The report defines and segments the global PCM market with analysis and forecasting of the global revenue and volume. The phase change material market is estimated to grow from $460 million in 2013 to $1,150 million by 2018, growing with a CAGR of 20.1% during the same period.
The increasing demand for energy-saving and environment-friendly technology is driving the growth of the global phase change material (PCM) market. The development of new products and market shift towards bio-based phase change material will surge the demand in future. With new and improved products, companies can provide more application specific solutions and hence, increase the demand. Industry participants with the most significant product developments include BASF (Germany), Honeywell (China), Outlast Technologies (U.S.), and Sonoco (U.S.).
Currently, building & construction is the major application of PCM followed by HVAC (heating, ventilation and air-conditioning). Thermal energy storage, and shipping, packaging & transportations also have significant market sizes. These applications are more matured in commercialization cycle as compared to textile and electronics. PCM usage in a particular application and its commercialization depends upon the availability of right grade. This market has vast potential which can be utilized with reduction in cost of PCM as well as macro and micro-encapsulation technique.
Commonly, a company targets to a certain or few applications with limited PCM portfolio. The different types of PCM are organic, inorganic, and bio-based which are made from paraffin, salt hydrates, and plant oil or animal fat respectively. Each type of PCM can have variety of products with different temperature ranges targeting to different applications. Organic PCM offers maximum revenue while bio-based PCM is expected to have highest growth rate during next five years. Reduction in prices will drive the bio-based PCM market.
Most of the key players are located in Europe and North America where the market is consolidated with respect to individual applications. Asia-Pacific stands just next to these two regions where this market has been developing with an increasing awareness.
This report forecasts revenue and volume of the global PCM market and its various submarkets with respect to main regions such as Europe, Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Middle East & Africa. It segments the global PCM market by types, applications, and geography. It also focuses on market dynamics such as drivers, restraints, opportunities, burning issues, and winning imperatives. Major players in the global PCM market have been identified and profiled in the report.