Staying ahead of the technology curve means strengthening your competitive advantage. That is why we give you data-driven innovation insights into the materials industry. This time, you get to discover 5 hand-picked startups developing silica solutions.
Global Startup Heat Map highlights 5 Top Silica Solutions out of 79
The insights of this data-driven analysis are derived from the Big Data & Artificial Intelligence-powered StartUs Insights Discovery Platform, covering 2.093.000+ startups & scaleups globally. The platform gives you an exhaustive overview of emerging technologies & relevant startups within a specific field in just a few clicks.
The Global Startup Heat Map below reveals the distribution of the 79 exemplary startups & scaleups we analyzed for this research. Further, it highlights 5 materials startups that we hand-picked based on criteria such as founding year, location, funding raised, and more. You get to explore the solutions of these 5 startups & scaleups in this report. For insights on the other 74 silica solutions, get in touch.
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AeroShield develops Silica Aerogel
Aerogels possess optical, thermal, and mechanical properties that make them suitable for many industrial applications such as insulation and transducers. Moreover, due to their porosity, they find use in adsorption, catalysis, and sensing as well. Material startups are developing aerogels based on different chemicals, primarily silica, to impart these qualities to their materials. The unique properties of silica aerogels make them energy-efficient replacements to glass.
US-based startup AeroShield manufactures super-insulating glass shields. The startup’s technology utilizes silica aerogel, a solid material with 95% gas trapped inside. It optimizes chemical recipes and synthesis techniques to develop aerogels with high optical clarity. AeroShield’s glass shields find use in the development of lighter, thinner, and more energy-efficient windows, as well as solar thermal receivers.
WaferPro offers Fused Silica Wafers
Glass wafers are pieces of precision glass with many industrial applications, particularly for semiconductors and integrated circuit (IC) packaging. However, they are not stable at high temperatures. This is why materials startups are developing fused silica wafers as alternatives to normal glass. Fused silica also offers higher transmission in the infrared and ultraviolet spectrum.
WaferPro is a US-based startup developing fused silica wafers. It manufactures three different types of silica glass wafers – ultraviolet (UV) grade, optical grade, and full spectrum. These wafers provide high transparency and low-OH content, making the wafers ideal for use in power devices and sensors. The startup also provides silicon nitride, silicon thermal oxide, and silicon on insulator (SOI) wafers as well as other semiconductor materials.
Ultra HPQ provides High Purity Quartz
The demand for high-performing semiconductors is continuously rising due to their use in devices and sensors. Consequently, there is a huge need for high-quality quartz as it is used in the production of quartz glass products, semiconductor wafers, and crucibles. To meet this demand, material startups produce high purity quartz in different specifications. These materials have a silica content of up to 99.99%.
Australian startup Ultra HPQ specializes in the production of ultra-high purity sand and its byproducts. The startup provides high purity quartz that enables the development of advanced custom materials with high purity. Further, this quartz is suitable for use in specialty glass, ceramics, solar, and electronics quartz markets.
Brazil manufactures Precipitated Silica
Precipitated silica is a form of synthetic amorphous silica with a wide range of performance-enhancing features over regular silica or carbon black. It has high tensile strength and abrasion resistance while reducing rolling resistance. Material startups and companies fine-tune the manufacturing process to produce precipitated silica with different specifications. It finds applications in rubber, adhesives, and animal feed.
Indian startup Brisil produces advanced precipitated silica and other chemicals. The startup’s zero-waste chemical process derives precipitated silica and byproducts from rice husk ash. The low energy process further enables the development of highly dispersible silica and finds applications in the production of tires, paints, coatings, and pharmaceuticals, among other products.
P1 Nanotechnology develops Nano-Ceramic Coating
Ceramic coatings generally protect surfaces, such as automotive and medical device surfaces, from damage from UV rays, chemicals, and water. However, they do not protect against scratches or swirl marks. Nano-ceramic coatings, on the contrary, protect even against such environmental damage. That is why material startups are developing silica-based coatings that provide higher protection and versatility.
P1 Nanotechnology is a British startup developing nano-ceramic coating. The startup’s coating formulation includes over 70% pure high-grade silica quartz. It bonds with the surfaces on a molecular level, resulting in high protection against scratches, swirl marks, UV rays, and other forms of damage. The hydrophobic coating is applicable to a wide range of surfaces, serving as a comprehensive solution for automotive coating.
Discover more Materials Startups
Materials startups, such as the examples highlighted in this report, focus on creating new materials, advancing additive manufacturing, and developing new coating solutions. While all of these technologies play a major role in advancing the materials industry, they only represent the tip of the iceberg. To explore more materials technologies, simply get in touch to let us look into your areas of interest. For a more general overview, you can download our free Materials Innovation Report to save your time and improve strategic decision-making.
