It’s no secret that the smart grid movement is a big hotspot for telecom companies – big and small – to branch into a new industry sector to expand business, growth opportunities and visibility in another market. 

And now, with a new report from NanoMarkets, it seems that the smart grid movement will create opportunities for advanced materials suppliers as well.

Ranging from new compound semiconductors to the latest nanomaterials, the report, titled, “Opportunities for New Materials and Devices in the Smart Grid: 2010 to 2017,” highlights the fact that this trend is rounding the bends of the smart grid infrastructure.

The report also claims that the new smart grid products will create $12 billion in revenue opportunity for suppliers of components, wires, cables, storage devices and insulators.

By utilizing composite materials, the smart grid will have the ability to carry much larger currents and voltages than today. With materials are already in use today, though in much slower capacities, the report states that, within a few years, nanocomposite dieletrics will be used as fillers in grid insulators, with a projected revenue of $500 million by 2017.

And, with the current economic downturn that no doubt, all materials suppliers, are feeling, a new venue of business generated by the smart grid movement is essential during this current economic time. 

For specific grid power electronic devices, silicon carbide has already been substituted for traditional silicon. The report also stated that gallium nitride, zinc oxide and industrial diamond may also come into play in the smart grid movement in the future. 

“Using devices made with these materials, electricity grids will be able to carry more electricity and there will be fewer switching devices needed than in today's grid infrastructure; switching losses are said to be half of those for equivalent silicon devices,” report officials said. 

By 2017, NanoMarkets projects that over $400 million in non-silicon power electronics devices will be sold into grid applications. In the same year, roughly $350 million will be spent on superconducting cables and fault current limiting, or “FCL,” devices for the smart grid, report officials added. 

What the future holds remains to be seem, but, with the insight from NanoMarkets’ report, the light at the end of the tunnel looks a bit brighter for companies in other industries looking to break their mold, and break into the smart grid movement.