As Industries Warm up to Use of Aerogels, the Material will Constitute Market Worth US$1.09 bn by 2023

Composed of 98% air, it is easy to see why aerogels are fast becoming the material of choice in applications where weight is a concern. The global aerogels market is expected to be worth over US$1.09 bn by 2023 rising remarkably from its 2014 valuation of US$309.1 mn. This massive jump will be facilitated by the soaring demand for aerogels in two massive industries – construction and oil and gas. According to Transparency Market Research, the silica aerogels will witness the highest demand. The market will also be defined by appreciable demand for metal oxide aerogels and carbon aerogels.

Here are three trends to watch out for in the Global Aerogels Market:

• Silica aerogels to enjoy the highest demand: As compared to other types of aerogels, the demand for silica aerogels will be the highest. A lot of research has gone into commercializing silica-based aerogels and this has also made their prices competitive. Moreover, with a rising demand for silica aerogels in the construction, transportation, and oil and gas industries, steady demand is expected to emanate for silica aerogels over the coming years.

• Oil and gas industry stands as the largest end user for silica aerogels: About 60% of all aerogels produced worldwide were consumed by the oil and gas sector in 2014. The material serves as an excellent insulating agent and thus finds numerous uses in the oil and gas sector. The construction sector, where insulation is used extensively in protecting dwellers from extreme temperatures, is the other key end user of aerogels. The use of aerogels will rise rapidly in the transportation sector, where there is an intense focus on using lightweight material at every possible opportunity.

• The United States is an early adopter of technologies related to the manufacture of astoundingly lighter aerogels. The North America market is thus the largest regional market for aerogels with a 55% share as of 2014. Europe is expected to log the fastest growth in the global aerogels market. However, it will be at least a decade before aerogels catch on in the developing countries in Asia Pacific and Rest of the World.

What cannot be denied, however, is that the aerogels market will expand robustly over the next eight years.

Browse Industry Research on Aerogels: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/global-aerogels.html

India’s Appetite for Packaged Food Showing Relentless Rise

India’s growing appetite for novel foods is good news for the packaged food market in country, where food habits are no longer as they were even a decade ago. The growth of India’s packaged food market has thus promoted several global players to sit up and take notice – a fact corroborated by a survey that was recently published by the Associated Chamber of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham).

Double Incomes and Convenience Quotient Promoting Growth

The survey states that in metropolitan cities, about 79% of all households show a preference for instant food because they are increasingly pressed for time and typically have more than one working members in the family. The convenience factor plays an important role too so does the fact that the standard of living of Indians has improved by several notches.

Parents Serving up Easy-to-cook Meals About 10-12 Times a Month

Another interesting finding of the survey is that in large cities, at least 76% of parents (both working in most cases) who have children aged five years or less serve up ready-to-cook or easy-to-make food as many as 10 to 12 times in the span of a month.

Urban Areas See High Demand for Packaged Food

Not surprisingly, it is households in urban areas where the demand for packaged foods is seen to be the highest. Consumers who brave the commute to and from work and battle with a fast pace of life find respite in packaged foods that make meal time less of a hassle. Companies in the Indian packaged food market have been quick to spot this opportunity and have wasted no time in launching products to fulfil this unmet need.

Huge Divide Exists Between India’s Urban, Rural, and Semi-urban Consumers

Urban areas in India generate a staggering 80% of all demand for packaged food in the country. The remaining demand comes from the semi-urban and rural areas. This clearly indicates that a massive divide exists between the consumption of packaged food in urban and rural areas. Packaged food products with a high demand in India are: canned and frozen food, processed meat, bakery and dairy products, diet snacks, ready-to-eat meals, and health drinks and products. 

Browse Industry Research on Packaged Food: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/packaged-food-market.html

Multiple Advantages over Silicon Propelling Gallium Nitride Industry

In the past few years, gallium nitride (GaN) has seen a rising level of popularity in the field of electronics and the market for GaN industrial devices has seen significant growth in the past few years. Owing to the unique material and electronic properties of GaN and the high dielectric strength, current density, operating temperature, speed switching, and low on-resistance offered by GaN devices, GaN is projected to replace the dominant silicon in power electronics as silicon devices reach their limit in undertaking severe performance tasks. Permitting much higher energy efficiency than silicon, GaN is projected to enable the implementation of the highly sought-after energy-efficient products of the future.

As power semiconductor devices and circuits, which form the critical part of almost all electronic products and energy distribution infrastructure, approach severe performance and cost limitations, a great deal of attention is being given to materials such as GaN.

In 2013, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) dedicated nearly half of the more than US$140 mn research funding in the field of power electronics to research into the utilization of GaN, citing the material’s potential in reducing the global consumption of energy. The field of GaN applications is ripe with growth opportunities and many companies are coming ahead with innovative GaN devices that promise to cut down the use of energy in consumer products, electric cars, data centers, and many other powered devices by nearly 10-20%.

Why the Shift from Silicon?
Silicon has been the dominant material in the field of power management for the past six decades. As silicon enabled new applications that were not possible with other semiconductors such as selenium or germanium, proved to be more reliable, was easier to use, and reduced the overall cost of the end product, it was preferred over earlier semiconductors. The basic physical properties of silicon, along with the rapid advancements in manufacturing infrastructure, technology, and engineering, made silicon the most preferred material in the power and electronics industry.

Browse Press Release:http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/pressrelease/gan-industrial-devices-market.htm

Silicon technology has formed the core of almost all earlier low-power electromechanical and thermionic devices. But times are rapidly changing in the field of technology and electronics; high-power circuits are rapidly replacing low-power circuits in commonly used consumer electronics products such as power adapters of laptops. Though silicon is still the dominant element in these power circuits, there are certain fundamental material limitations of silicon that lead to wastage of energy in the form of heat when silicon transistors are used to amplify and switch electronic signals and power.

GaN Market Poised to Expand at 15.10% CAGR between 2014 and 2021
According to a recent market research report published by Transparency Market Research, the global market for GaN industrial devices is expected to significantly benefit from the rising set of applications of GaN-based devices across several industries. The market is expected to expand at a 15.10% CAGR between 2014 and 2021 and rise from a valuation of US$0.4 bn in 2014 to US$1.3 bn by 2021. The high demand for enhanced product performance on battlefields from the defense industry, large-scale production of GaN-based devices, and high demand for energy-efficient semiconductor equipment in the electronics industry will majorly drive the market.

Global Wearable Technology Market to Soon Witness Saturation in Wrist-worn Wearables and Advent of VR Wearables

The global wearable technology marketwill expand at a remarkable CAGR of 40.80% during the forecast period from 2012 to 2018, says Transparency Market Research (TMR). Although the global wearable technology market is expected to enjoy impressive growth, the dynamics of this market are changing.

These changing dynamics will not favor the wearable wristwatches segment. On the contrary, strong growth will be associated with the segment of virtual reality or VR wearables.

Wrist-worn Wearables Market Reaches Saturation

In the past few years, wrist-worn wearables were what consumers and players in the global wearable technology market focused on. Companies were fiercely competing to launch smartwatches that offered multiple features and came equipped with the latest technology. However, the wrist-worn wearables market has now reached its saturation point.

The value proposition of these wrist-worn wearables is that they compile your physical activity data and provide analysis of it. However, there has not been any cutting-edge innovations observed in the wrist-worn wearable technology segment for some time. Furthermore, the competition in the wrist-worn wearable technology market has become even steeper. The market is flooded with these products. So, even if companies such as Apple, Xiaomi, and Fitbit ship millions of devices, the share of wrist-worn wearables such as smartwatches and smart bracelets is projected to remain more or less the same.

VR is the Next Big Thing in the Global Wearables Industry

The saturation of the wrist-worn technology wearables segment has led to companies focusing on VR devices. The number of shipments of smart headwear is expected to soar in the coming few years. This growth is attributed to the increasing demand for wearable virtual reality technologies. Major players such as Sony, Oculus, Google, and HTC have entered the market, which is projected to drive the virtual reality wearable technology market further.

There is massive scope for further innovation in the global wearable technology market. Several new entrants are expected to enter the VR wearable technology market and drive innovation and competition. In addition to this, wrist-worn wearables are mostly made keeping in mind physical fitness, while VR wearables are expected to find application in several areas. Some of these areas are military, education, entertainment, healthcare, fashion, engineering, sport, media, business, construction, scientific visualization, and telecommunications.

Currently, time, cost, and technological limitations are challenging the VR wearable technology market. However, with rising innovation, players in the global wearable technology market will be able to overcome these issues.

Browse Press Release:http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/pressrelease/wearable-technology.htm

Another driver of the VR wearable technology market is the rising investment in it. Recently, Facebook invested US$2 bn in the virtual reality hardware firm Oculus. According to Zuckerberg, after games, they are going to create an Oculus platform for several other experiences.

At present, many people are using smartwatches or bracelets in their daily lives, but the market for wrist-worn wearables has reached maturity. In the foreseeable future, VR is expected to become a part of our daily lives.

Global Mobile Applications Market: Gaming Apps to Rule the Market in Near Future

With an ever-increasing number of smartphone users downloading mobile apps, the global mobile applications market is anticipated to exhibit a positive CAGR of 16.2% during the period between 2014 and 2020. The number of mobile apps downloaded globally is expected to reach 268,692 mn by 2017, thereby increasing the valuation of the global mobile applications market to US$54.89 bn by 2020. The most popular mobile apps are entertainment and gaming apps. These apps accounted for more than 40% of the overall market in 2013. With the surging demand for entertainment and gaming apps, key market players such as Apple Inc., Google, Blackberry, Microsoft, and others are focussing on developing apps with advanced features.

Microsoft Acquires Educational Mobile App MinecraftEdu

This week, Microsoft announced that it has acquired MinecraftEdu, a blockbuster game app designed for students in schools. The app has a strong following and is already used over 7,000 classrooms across 40 countries. MinecraftEdu is a modified version of Minecraft, created by a start-up firm TeacherGaming. The app helps students to construct anything they want out of block-shaped materials. The creative possibilities of the app can serve as a supplemental learning tool for students. Though Microsoft has acquired MinecraftEdu to target the student community, most of Minecraft’s appeal is related to entertainment. The top paid app on Apple and Google mobile app stores is the best-selling PC game of all time. With this acquisition, Microsoft aims to boost its struggling smartphone business.

Nintendo Goes Mobile with ‘Miitomo’, Apple Raises Prices of its Mobile Apps

Nintendo, the world’s largest video game company, is entering into the mobile space. The Japanese gaming giant is expected to launch its first smartphone game, Miitomo, in March this year. However, experts are pointing out that Miitomo is actually not a game. Rather, it is an app to expand communication between Mii character users. The fact that Nintendo is releasing its first official app for mobile reflects the growing demand for mobile game applications amid users.

Browse Press Release:http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/pressrelease/mobile-applications-market.htm

Apple Inc. regularly revises the prices of its apps to keep international rates in line with prices in the U.S. Recently, the technology giant has increased the prices of its App Store apps across seven countries namely Israel, Canada, New Zealand, Mexico, South Africa, Russia, and Singapore. Developers are of the opinion that the price hike would make consumers more demanding and expect higher standards of development. However, users are not expected to be affected largely as most of them use free apps. For gaming apps, users rely on in-app purchases rather than paying high price upfront. Further, with well-developed gaming apps, users do not hesitate to pay a little more. On the other hand, if a game is not good enough, consumers do not buy it even if the price is reduced to half. This shows that the mobile game applications market has a potential for robust growth in the coming years with users unfazed about paying a price for well-made applications.

Innovation and Inventions in Gesture Recognition Market Seek to Make Machine-Human-Interaction More Natural

In the past few years, the field of human-computer-interaction has seen significant emphasis and a rising rate of research initiatives aimed at creating easy-to-use interfaces by directly employing manipulation skills and natural communication of humans. Many innovative products applying gesture recognition technologies have also been introduced in the market and have received far-ranging popularity. Many smartphones, consumer electronics products, smart TVs, gaming consoles have efficiently elucidated the ease with which one can now interact with machines.

The rising demand for gesture based products from the tech-savvy global population of today is significantly driving the global gesture recognition market. The market had a valuation of US$7.5 bn in 2014. The market is expected to expand at an impressive 20.3% CAGR between 2015 and 2021 and reach a valuation of US$29.1 bn by 2021, according to a research report on gesture recognition technology market by Transparency Market Research. The rising demand for 2D gesture recognition technology in consumer electronics as well as the rising applications of 3D gesture recognition in the automotive industry are prompting researchers to develop innovative ways of incorporating gestures in interaction with machines.

Market has Much More to Offer than Enhanced Intuitiveness of Consumer Electronics

A number of novel gesture recognition technologies have reached the consumer through innovative products in the past few years. By making mobile devices such as smartphones and tablet computers more intuitive, the market has demonstrated the potential of gesture recognition technologies to ensure user-friendliness in consumer electronics. This, however, is only a snapshot of the potential applications of gesture recognition technologies.

Browse Press Release:http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/pressrelease/gesture-recognition-market.htm

The market is seeing the introduction of novel ways of making machines understand human gestures. The various technologies of human gesture recognition integrated to ensure communication with machines are also continuously increasing. Researchers are taking efforts to perfect gesture technologies with their offerings, and are making the field increasingly sophisticated. Some companies are experimenting with ultrasonic waves to leverage the potential of touch-less gesture recognition, some are working towards the improvement of optical sensors for boosting the potential of gesture recognition devices. The examples are numerous, pointing towards the possibility of the introduction of new natural user interfaces that will allow humans to interact with machines with as much ease as is the interaction with humans.

Microsoft’s 3D In-Air Gesture Recognition System a worthy Contender

A recent news about the development of one such gesture recognition system by the technology giant Microsoft affirms this possibility. A patent application from Microsoft published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office reveals one such new-generation 3D gesture recognition system that apparently does not even require multitouch commands. The in-air gesture recognition system has been designed to work with both traditional consumer electronics devices such as smartphones and tablets as well as future smart devices like kitchen appliances with or without a display. It is being said that the system will be able to recognize figure and two-arm gestures when working with stuff like whiteboards.

Global Control Valves Market Led by Rising Demand from Power Generation, Oil and Gas Sectors

Control valves are used to control various properties, such as flow rate, temperature, and pressure of fluids or steam used in a particular industrial operation. The operation of control valves may be manual or automated, depending on the specific requirements of the particular operation. They are used in a wide variety of industries in which fluids are of crucial importance, including oil and gas, power generation, the automotive industry, wastewater management, mining, food and beverages, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals.

According to Transparency Market Research, a leading market intelligence firm, the global control valves market had a value of US$7.7 bn at the end of 2014. Exhibiting a strong 7% CAGR thereon, the market is expected to rise to a valuation of US$12.1 bn by 2021.

Four of the largest and fastest growing end-use segments of the control valves market expected to take center stage in the coming years are:

Power Generation:
Power generation is the largest end-use segment of the global control valves market. Control valves perform a vital task in power generation, since any fluid leak in a power generation plant can reduce the production capacity of the plant significantly. The growing demand for power from the manufacturing and industrial sectors in developing economies such as China, India, Brazil, etc. will help propel the global control valves market in the coming years.

Oil and Gas:
Increased investment in upgrading the fluid handling system used in rigs and refineries will see increased demand for control valves. Control valves are absolutely essential in the oil and gas industry, since any leaks around the highly volatile and combustible crude oil and its derivatives can have deadly consequences. The global control valves market is also gaining traction due to the rising demand for control valves in new pipeline installations.

Pharmaceuticals:
Another benefit of installing sophisticated and modernized fluid handling systems is the avoidance of hygiene issues. While that is not the major issue in the oil and gas industry, many pharmaceuticals manufacturers have realized the importance of having an updated fluid handling mechanism in order to maintain hygiene and make the end product as safe as possible. Sophisticated fluid handling mechanisms can also speed up the manufacturing process, which has also become vital for pharmaceutical market players due to the rising demand for various types of medication.

Browse Press Release:http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/pressrelease/control-valves-market.htm

Food and Beverages:
Like the pharmaceuticals industry, the food and beverages industry also utilizes control valves to ensure the hygiene of the end product and speed up the manufacturing process. The rising demand for packaged food, in particular, has had a positive effect on the global control valves market.

North America to Lead Global Control Valves Market
Widespread presence of all major end-use industries of control valves has helped North America emerge as the largest regional segment of the global control valves market, with a 37% share in 2014. The increasing oil and gas exploration and extraction, particularly with the increasing share of unconventional gas extraction technologies and offshore exploration, in North America will result in steady demand from the global control valves market, ensuring the region’s dominance in the market.