Graphene Market Overview
The graphene market size is estimated to reach US$2.1 billion by 2030 after growing at a CAGR of around 21.0% from 2024 to 2030. The graphene is an allotrope of carbon, like fullerenes and consists of single layer atoms and has same type of bonding as seen in carbon nanotubes. It has various applications in polymer additives, electronic batteries, composites, RFID, and others. The graphene-based polymer composites are used for medical implant developments, biosensors, and others. Furthermore, the graphene industry is experiencing major drive due to growing usage for batteries, which is used in electric vehicles and various electronic sectors. The high demand for graphene in various industries such as automotive, electronics, aerospace, and others owing to excellent properties such as fire resistance, high electrical conductivity, lightness, and stable power absorption will propel growth during the forecast period.
Initially, graphene was primarily associated with high-performance materials for electronics and energy storage applications. However, a significant trend in recent years is the diversification of its applications across various industries. Graphene is now being explored for use in sectors such as healthcare (for biosensors, drug delivery systems), automotive (for lightweight and conductive materials), aerospace (for composites and coatings), textiles (for enhancing strength and conductivity), and environmental remediation (for water purification and pollution control).
There is and increased focus on scaling up production methods to meet the growing demand for graphene-based materials. Initially, the production of high-quality graphene was limited to small-scale laboratory processes, which were not suitable for large-scale industrial applications. However, significant progress has been made in developing scalable production methods such as chemical vapor deposition (CVD), liquid-phase exfoliation, and electrochemical exfoliation. These methods allow for the production of graphene in large quantities while maintaining its quality and properties. Scaling up production is crucial for reducing costs, improving accessibility, and enabling widespread adoption of graphene in various industries. As these production methods continue to advance, they are expected to drive further growth and innovation in the graphene industry.
Market Snapshot:
COVID-19 Impact
The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted and hampered the growth in the graphene market. The graphene has a wide range of applications in electronics, aerospace, and other sectors. The worldwide disruptions such as logistics disturbances, supply and demand gap, and manufacturing halt will affect the growth in the market. Moreover, the electronics industry experienced major impact and delays due to lockdown restrictions and disruptions across the globe during COVID-19 outbreak. The logistics slowdown and halted productions led to major decline in the electronics industry. The unavailability of workforce and raw materials created delay in manufacturing. Furthermore, various electronic manufacture
temporarily stopped the productions in COVID-19 due to disturbed supply chain and difficulties in distribution channels. According to the UN reports, the sales of electronic items and electrical equipment saw a 30% fall in low-income nations, and around 5% decline in high-income nations during first three quarters of 2020. The decline in electronics sector led to fall in the applications for graphene such as batteries, electronic composites, and others. Thus, the demand for graphene industry experienced a major fall during the COVID-19.
Graphene's unique properties, such as its high surface area and biocompatibility, make it promising for various medical applications. During the pandemic, there was increased interest in using graphene-based materials for developing efficient sensors, diagnostic devices, and even drug delivery systems to combat COVID-19. Graphene-based materials were explored for enhancing the performance of PPE, such as masks and gloves. These materials offer properties like antimicrobial activity and enhanced filtration efficiency, which could potentially improve the protection level against viruses like SARS-CoV-2.
As the world recovers from the pandemic, the graphene market has rebounded, driven by continued innovation and growing demand for advanced materials.
Report Coverage
The report: “Graphene Market Report – Forecast (2024-2030)” by IndustryARC covers an in-depth analysis of the following segments of the graphene market and provides graphene industry outlook.
By Type: Graphene Oxide, Graphene Nanoplatelets, Graphene Sheets and Films, Monolayer Graphene, Few-layer Graphene, Multi-layer Graphene, and Others.
By Fabrication Method: Liquid Phase and Thermal Exfoliation, Chemical Vapor Deposition, Silicon Carbide Synthesis, and Others.
By Application: Composites, Sensors, Batteries, RFID, Energy Storage, Coatings, Polymer Additive, and Others.
By End Use Industry: Electronics (Electronic Components, Printed Electronics, Optical Electronics, and Others), Automotive (Passenger Vehicles, Electric Vehicles, and Commercial Vehicles), Aerospace (Aircrafts, Drones Manufacturing, and Others), Healthcare (Biomedical Devices, Wearable Healthcare Monitoring, and Others), and Others.
By Geography: North America (USA, Canada, and Mexico), Europe (UK, Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Russia, Belgium, and Rest of Europe), Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, India, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand, Indonesia, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Rest of APAC), South America (Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, and Rest of South America), Middle East (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Israel, Rest of the Middle East) and Africa (South Africa, Nigeria, Rest of Africa).
Key Takeaways
- The global graphene market size will increase due to rising demand for various end-use industries such as automotive, electronics, aerospace, and others due to its superior properties such as high electrical and thermal conductivity, lightness, and others.
- The Asia Pacific region dominates the global graphene market due to high growth opportunities from electric vehicles and demand for aerospace, automotive, and electronic industrial base.
- The demand for graphene nanoplatelets will grow due to increasing application in composites, electronics, power storage, and others during the forecast period.
Graphene Market Analysis – By Type
By type, the graphene nanoplatelets segment is expected to grow by over 23.7% during the forecast period 2024 - 2030. The high demand for the nanoplatelets is influenced by its increasing application in the market. It offers superior properties such as thermal and electrical conductivity, stiffness, and others for applications majorly in the electronics industry. Moreover, the rising adoption of graphene nanoplatelets in the battery electrodes, thermal management system, conductive inks, and others is propelling the demand in the graphene market. Furthermore, opportunities for graphene nanoplatelets to replace the carbon nanotubes, carbon fiber, and others in the electronic composites will offer major growth opportunities in the market. Thus, with increasing demand for graphene nanoplatelets in various end-use industries, majorly electronics, the global graphene market will grow in the coming years.
Graphene Market Analysis – By Application
By application, the batteries segment is expected to account for the largest graphene market share in 2023 and is expected to grow by around 19.6% during the forecast period. The demand for graphene is high for electronic applications, majorly the batteries, which is influenced by growing demand for light and high-capacity batteries in electronics and automotive sector. The graphene nanocomposites offer high conductivity and high surface area, which is ideal for lithium-ion batteries demanding high energy and storage capacities, good stability, and longer span. The batteries are used in the electric vehicles, cranes, and various electronic devices such as smartphones, tablets, electronic wearable, and others. The graphene anode is incorporated in the lithium-ion batteries to offer high energy storage as well as better charge rate and longevity. Thus, with growing application demand for batteries in various end-use industries, majorly for the electronics, the graphene market will experience major growth during the forecast period.
Graphene Market Analysis – By End-Use Industry
By end-use industry, the electronics segment holds the largest graphene market share of 25% in 2023. The high demand of graphene in the electronics segment is influenced by its superior properties such as electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, lightness, and others. The graphene is used in batteries, touch screens, optical electronics, conductive inks, and others. The graphene-based photonic crystals are used in optoelectronics devices. The increasing applications for graphene in electronic devices, electric vehicles, semiconductors, and others have led to major growth opportunities for the graphene industry. Furthermore, the development of the graphene powered EMI shielding provides EMI/RFI protection and prevents internal RFI/EMI leaks. Thus, with growing demand of graphene for various electronic applications, the global graphene market will grow massively during the forecast period.
Graphene Market Analysis – By Geography
By Geography, the Asia Pacific segment is the fastest-growing region in the graphene market for the year 2023 and will grow by over 29% during the forecast period. There is a growth in applications for graphene in electric vehicles, consumer electronics, aerospace, and others in this region. The Asia Pacific region is the largest producers of electronic goods, which tends to boost the demand of graphene for various electronic devices, electric vehicle batteries, and others. Thus, with high demand for graphene, including graphene-based polymer composites, optical electronics, consumer electronics, wearable, and others, and flourishing end-use industries such as automotive, aerospace, and others, the graphene industry will grow during the forecast period.
Graphene Market Drivers
Increasing demand in automotive industry:
The application demand of graphene in the automotive sector such as graphene-based batteries in vehicles, tires, anti-braking systems, and others is increasing due to its superior properties such as thermal conductivity, electrical conductivity, tensile strength, and lightness. The graphene oxide-based films are used in automotive to make them lighter and safe. The wide range of application of graphene in the automotive components will boost its growth and thereby drive the market. The graphene-based polymer composites are used in automotive to offer lightweight, safety, and fuel efficiency. According to the International Organization of Motor Vehicles Manufacturers (OICA), the production for motor vehicles was 85 million units for the year 2022. The growing automotive sector is propelling the growth for graphene applications, thereby adding to the graphene market size and growth in the coming years.
Growing application demand in aerospace and defense sector:
There is an increase in the demand for the graphene in the aerospace and defense industry due to its wide range of applications in aircraft, helicopters, spaceships, and others. The graphene provides excellent benefits such as high strength, low-density, low electrical conductivity, and others in the aircraft body, thereby boosting the growth opportunities. According to the India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF), the aerospace sector in India is expected to reach around USD 70 billion worth by the year 2030. The graphene provides strength, lightweight, flexibility, and durability in the aerospace sector. Furthermore, the usage of graphene in drones manufacturing is offering major growth in the market. The graphene or fullerene material coatings in aircraft or drones make it light for transportation of loads and ensure strength. Thus, it adds to the graphene market size by providing various applications and growth opportunities.
Graphene Market Challenges
Hazardous environment impacts and standardization issues:
The graphene oxide (GO) nanoparticles have shown various environmental threats and impacts, when released in lakes or streams from the industries as waste. The production for GO is increasing, which also increases the wastage in the environment. It can lead to toxic health effects for humans and environment. Furthermore, the standardization issue in the graphene industry is another challenge as various manufacturers produce different graphene types, which create confusions and diversification in the market. Furthermore, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) published ISO/TR 19733:2019 offers guidelines for the measurement techniques and matrix properties for the graphene and other 2-D materials to reduce the lack of standardization in graphene productions. Thus, with harmful environment effects and lack of standardization in production, the graphene market will see major growth challenges.
Global Graphene Industry Outlook
Technology launches, acquisitions, and R&D activities are key strategies adopted by players in the Graphene market. The key companies in the Graphene Market are:
- NanoXplore (XG Sciences, Inc)
- Global Graphene Group
- Perpetuus Advanced Materials PLC
- Graphenea SA
- Avanzare Innovacion Tecnologica S.L.
- Ningbo Morsh Technology Co., Ltd.
- Directa Plus S.p.A.
- Changzhou Sixth Element Materials Technology Co., Ltd.
- Haydale Graphene Industries
- ACS Material
Recent Developments
- In December 2022, Haydale launched its graphene-enhanced prepreg to deliver cost-efficient composite tooling with extended tooling life, improved surface quality, and enhanced thermal conductivity.
- In August 2022, NanoXplore acquired XG Sciences, a chemicals company. The acquisition included a significant portion of XG Sciences' assets, including the company's participation in the battery material space.