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Supercapacitor Technologies and Markets 2018-2028

Electric double-layer capacitors (EDLC), ultracapacitors, lithium-ion capacitors

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After a couple of years of stagnation, the supercapacitor industry is showing renewed signs of market penetration, mostly in the automotive sector with the adoption of start-stop supercapacitor technology in the US by General Motors and Mercedes. Supercapacitors are also becoming the dominant technology in large wind turbine pitch control applications, and the global uptake of wind renewable energy will favour the growth of supercapacitor technology. As a matter of fact, the grid market which includes wind turbines, grid energy storage and rail wayside offers opportunities for growth for all players. At the same time, many new applications are opening up with the lower-end electrical engineering applications at 1-400 Farad being a new focus.
 
Chinese supercapacitor manufacturers are emerging and potentially displacing western companies domestically in the following years. The supercapacitor market in China for non-Chinese companies is now highly uncertain and they look to diversify out of the Chinese electric bus market and into emerging segments such as grid. China has recently reversed its policy on traditional hybrid vehicles, declaring that in 2030, 30% of cars made would be hybrids that do not plug in. The railway regeneration business in China generated the world's largest supercapacitor order in 2015 and it is expanding geographically there.
 
Lithium titanate batteries are the main competitor of supercapacitor technologies, first in automotive and recently in energy harvesting for IoT applications. Hybrid Li-ion capacitors also have the possibility to capture market value in areas where high power is still paramount, but some extra capacity is desired too.
 
Within this framework, IDTechEx has produced an excellent market report on supercapacitor technologies and markets. The first part gives an overview of the supercapacitor market, based on company visits in Europe, Japan, and the US, as well as conversations with companies exhibiting at the main energy storage events around the world. A summary of the supercapacitor value chain and cost structure complements the initial market overview. The subject is further examined by giving a list of examples of emerging markets where supercapacitors can make a difference, such as industrial vehicles and airborne wind energy.
 
Subsequently, the report contains a detailed analysis of the operating principle of both capacitors, supercapacitors, and lithium-ion capacitors, with an explanation of the nuances and differences in those three energy storage technologies. The potential of graphene and carbon nanotubes (CNT) in supercapacitors is evaluated, together with examples from the industry where those two carbon-based materials are used. The electrolyte market, which is subjected to regulation and disruption, is also analysed, with a breakdown of electrolyte choice by supercap manufacturer.
 
Finally, the markets where supercapacitors can be used are analysed one by one, from transportation, to wireless sensor networks, to stationary storage, to renewables integration, railway, consumer electronics, industrial vehicles, and much more.
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1.EXECUTIVE SUMMARY AND MARKET FORECASTS
1.1.Focus of this report and primary trends
1.2.Progress with supercapacitors (2017)
1.3.Progress in new applications (Q3 2017)
1.4.New applications: Airborne Wind Energy
1.5.New applications: Electric Vehicles for Construction
1.6.Kone Cranes adopts supercapacitors
1.7.Turnkey installation with minimal vehicle engineering
1.8.Forecasts
1.9.Forecasts 2018-2028
2.STATE OF THE SUPERCAPACITOR MARKET (2017)
2.1.Competitive Landscape
2.2.Company performance 2017 vs. 2016
3.SUPERCAPACITORS' SUPPLY CHAIN
3.1.European perspective on supply chain in supercapacitors
3.2.Why do SC manufacturers bother in preparing the active material?
3.3.Manufacturing development trends
4.SUPERCAPACITORS' COST STRUCTURE
4.1.Cost Structure Supercapacitors
4.2.Supercapacitors cost reduction is far quicker than lithium ion batteries
4.3.How to price energy/power devices?
4.4.Supercapacitors: victims of the wrong performance metric?
4.5.Hybrid ESS = SC + Battery leads to cost benefits
5.TECHNOLOGY OVERVIEW
5.1.What is a supercapacitor?
5.2.Relative performance in Energy and Power of different energy storage technologies
5.3.Battery cycle life
5.4.Charge and discharge behavior Batteries and Supercapacitors
5.5.Practical limits to SC performance
5.6.Batteries and Supercapacitors
5.7.Theoretical principles
5.8.Types of capacitor
5.9.Principles - capacitance
5.10.Principles - supercapacitance
5.11.Principles - energy and power in supercapacitors
5.12.Schematics of a supercapacitor
5.13.Pseudo capacitance or faradaic behavior
5.14.Hybrid capacitors
5.15.Benefits of SC and Battery hybrid systems
5.16.Self Discharge
6.SUPERCAPACITOR COMPONENTS AND THEIR ROLE IN PERFORMANCE
6.1.Schematics of a supercapacitor
6.2.Supercapacitors components
6.3.Electrode materials - carbon, binders and additives
6.4.Electrode materials - Carbon
6.5.Pore size matters for capacitance
6.6.Increase Surface Area - Activation of Carbon
6.7.Graphene and supercapacitors
6.8.Increasing performance - Graphene
6.9.Graphene: beyond the hype
6.10.Ideal graphene has remarkable properties
6.11.Graphene and precursor materials
6.12.Surface utilisation challenge
6.13.Graphene Oxide (GO) reduction
6.14.Graphene/Graphite/CNT materials
6.15.Vertically Oriented Graphene Nanosheets (VOGN)
6.16.Supercapacitor performance
6.17.Increasing performance - Graphene
6.18.Companies setting targets to Increase performance - Graphene
6.19.Carbon nanotubes and supercapacitors
6.20.Carbon nanotubes CNT
6.21.Example Increasing performance - Carbon Nanotubes/ Carbon
6.22.Increasing performance - Carbon Nanotubes
6.23.Increasing performance Graphene/CNT
6.24.Electrolytes for supercapacitors
6.25.Electrolytes
6.26.Increasing performance the role of electrolytes
6.27.Organic vs aqueous electrolytes
6.28.Safety - Japanese regulation: a situation to consider
6.29.Electrolytes used by manufacturer
6.30.Increasing performance of aqueous electrolyte SC
6.31.Aqueous based electrolyte supercapacitors match performance of organic electrolyte supercapacitors
6.32.Environmentally friendly materials in Supercapacitors while keeping performance
6.33.Trends in electrolytes
6.34.New trend in electrolytes... Ionic Liquids
6.35.Ionic liquids and graphene for ionogel electrolytes in SC
6.36.The role of binders in SC
6.37.Natural Cellulose in Ionic Liquid Electrode Manufacturing process
6.38.Other technological advances - FASTcap
7.MARKETS FOR SUPERCAPACITORS
7.1.Three main market segments
7.2.Existing Automotive Applications details
7.3.Existing non-automotive applications
7.4.Medium term applications
7.5.Market segmentation by Farad/cell
7.6.The SC market according to Panasonic
7.7.Why SC in Energy Systems? Energy management in fluctuating power demand systems.
7.8.US Army's railgun
8.SUPERCAPACITORS IN ELECTRONICS
8.1.A role for supercapacitors in Smart and Portable Devices
8.2.Key enabling technologies and systems
8.3.Why Wireless Sensor Networks
8.4.Wireless Sensor Networks and IoT
8.5.Why Wireless Sensor Networks?
8.6.Critical infrastructure monitoring
8.7.Wireless Sensor Node
8.8.Why SC in Wireless Sensor Networks?
8.9.Typical average power of connected devices
8.10.Energy harvesting and supercapacitors
8.11.WSN operational profile
8.12.Why SC in Wireless Sensor Networks?
8.13.And that has an impact in power demand profiles...
8.14.Batteries are getting thinner
8.15.Why Micro-SC in WSN and other consumer electronics?
8.16.Energy harvesting with SC
8.17.Microsupercapacitors
8.18.Manufacturing techniques are key to low cost
9.SUPERCAPACITORS IN TRANSPORTATION
9.1.Challenges for SC in Automotive
9.2.Supercapacitors are replacing some batteries - expensive and little energy stored but...
9.3.Supercapacitors have a role in each stage of powertrain electrification
9.4.Start-stop Systems - Micro hybrids
9.5.Energy Recovery - Mild Hybrid
9.6.Continental - a success story
9.7.Battery
9.8.E.Home electric van
9.9.Power at the point of demand
9.10.Electronic Controlled Brake
9.11.Mazda Japan and Bollore Pininfarina (France/Italy)
9.12.Williams Advanced Engineering
9.13.Supercapacitor in the automotive sector
9.14.OEM's point of view
9.15.Supercapacitors in the Automotive Sector
9.16.SC progress in Automotive up to date
9.17.Supercapacitors in the future - Structural Energy Storage
9.18.SC and structural electronics - ZapGo
9.19.SC replace batteries on fuel cell for fast charge/ discharge
9.20.Bombardier light rail and others use supercapacitor energy harvesting
9.21.Rail: two ways of applying supercapacitors
9.22.Wayside Rail HESS: Frequency regulation and energy efficiency
9.23.Longer life, more reliable, better response. Completely replaces battery in pure electric Sinautec bus
9.24.Supercapacitors assist fast charging in ABB's TOSA bus charging system in Geneva
9.25.Fast charge-discharge
9.26.Hybrid buses in the US
9.27.Hybrid buses in China
9.28.Hybrid Bus - Series Hybrid
9.29.Hybrid Bus - Parallel Hybrid
9.30.Modular flexible hybrid drives
9.31.Maxwell Technologies Engine Start Module
9.32.Idling is a problem
9.33.ESM Value proposition
9.34.Two markets default option and retrofit (after market)
9.35.Supercapacitors in heavy trucks
9.36.SC market in retrofit or aftersales
9.37.Sports cars use supercaps
9.38.Sports cars use supercapacitors
9.39.The result - the Toyota Yaris Hybrid-R
9.40.Supercapacitors applications in Aerospace
9.41.Wireless Sensor Networks - Aviation
9.42.Energy harvesting and storage for structural health monitoring
10.SUPERCAPACITORS IN INDUSTRIAL APPLICATIONS
10.1.Supercapacitors in Industrial Applications
10.2.Emergency backup when the electrics fail: more likely to work than a battery
10.3.Supercapacitors in Port Cranes
10.4.Building Elevators
10.5.Smart Metering - AMR
10.6.Handheld products - Fast Charging
10.7.Photo-copying machines
10.8.Super Capacitor Heavy-duty Port Towing Vehicle produced by Aowei Certified by MIIT
10.9.SC in Lifting operations + Energy Recovery from Short Trips
10.10.Forklifts
10.11.Meeting on supercapacitors and forklifts
10.12.Forklifts may not be the same again
10.13.Results of the SC/graphene workshop in Frankfurt
11.SUPERCAPACITORS IN GRID APPLICATIONS
11.1.Grid Energy Storage
11.2.Uses of energy storage - SC and HESS
11.3.Hybrid energy storage systems: benefits
11.4.The role of SC in the grid
11.5.Duke Energy Rankin substation: PV intermittency smoothing + load shifting
11.6.Smoothing wind farm power output
11.7.Ireland Microgrid test bed
11.8.Freqcon - utility-scale supercapacitors
11.9.Response from the industry
11.10.Nippon Chemi-Con development plan
12.SUPERCAPACITORS MAIN COMPETITION: LITHIUM TITANATE BATTERIES
12.1.Comparison of SC with LIB: price/power
12.2.Battery company: Toshiba
12.3.Features of Toshiba's SCIB
12.4.Production plant for Toshiba's SCIB
12.5.Toshiba R&D activities
12.6.Small footprint Lithium titanate batteries by Murata
12.7.Graphene - LTO anode Improvement
12.8.Nippon Chemicon and LTO at Battery Japan
13.HYBRID SUPERCAPACITORS, SUPERCABATTERIES OR ASYMETRIC SUPERCAPACITORS
13.1.Nomenclature
13.2.Supercapacitors and Hybrid supercap.
13.3.Competitive landscape
13.4.Supercapacitors evolution
13.5.Nano hybrid capacitor (NHC)
13.6.Ultrabattery
13.7.Hybrid SC-Supercabateries can use aqueous or non aqueous electrolytes
13.8.LICs for EV fast charging infrastructures - ZapGo
13.9.Forecasts 2018-2028
14.COMPANY VISITS AND INTERVIEWS BY DR. PETER HARROP
14.1.Eaton Corporation USA
14.2.General Capacitor USA
14.3.Ioxus USA
14.4.Maxwell Technologies USA
14.5.Supreme Power Solutions (SPS) China
14.6.YES Clean Energy USA
14.7.Auckland University Chemical & Materials Engineering New Zealand
14.8.Auckland University Electrical & Computer Engineering New Zealand
14.9.Waikato University New Zealand
15.APPENDIX
15.1.List of abbreviations
 

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The supercapacitor market size will be over $1B by 2028

Report Statistics

Slides 245
Forecasts to 2028
 

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