In recent years, driven by the global push for energy conservation and emission reduction as well as the support of government policies in various countries, LED lighting has seen rapid development. Compared to traditional light sources, it offers advantages such as a longer lifespan, smaller size, energy efficiency, high performance, fast response time, shock resistance, and no pollution; these characteristics make it a \"green lighting source\" suitable for use in ordinary lighting applications. Meanwhile, as technology advances, various high-tech materials have emerged in the LED industry, contributing to a decrease in the cost of LED lamps, which has led to their increasing acceptance by people everywhere. The widespread use of LEDs in ordinary lighting is an inevitable trend.
So, which materials were particularly popular in the LED industry in 2014?
Sapphire
As is well known, sapphire glass is not only an innovative feature offered by Apple, having been chosen as the material for the screens of the iPhone 6 and iWatch; what many people don’t know is that it originated in the LEDOFweek semiconductor lighting industry. According to a global report on the sapphire substrate market in 2014, it was estimated that non-LED applications would account for 32% of the total market demand in that year, with demands related to handheld devices accounting for 21% of that figure. The increasing demand for both LED and non-LED applications will surely bring positive prospects for the sapphire industry. This means that LED applications will remain the dominant market for sapphire in the coming years, though price remains the most important factor here.
From a strategic perspective, although the interest in sapphire continues to grow, LED applications still represent the main driving force behind the sapphire industry. LED substrates account for 80% of all sapphire applications, and the prosperity of the LED industry generally follows the same trends as those of the sapphire industry. Based on investigations into the supply chain, the price of 2-inch sapphire rods has risen from $3.5 per millimeter at the beginning of the year to around $4 per millimeter; the price of 4-inch rods has increased from $12.5 per millimeter to $15 per millimeter. With the start of the major lighting cycle in 2014, it is expected that the supply and demand situation will return to its peak levels seen in 2010, which means that sapphire prices are likely to continue rising throughout 2014, as the industry enters another period of growth.
Thermally conductive plastic
Thermally conductive plastics are increasingly being used to replace metal components as heat-conducting elements in LED lighting fixtures, including lamp holders, cooling structures, and enclosures. Compared to metal materials, thermally conductive plastics offer advantages such as uniform heat dissipation, lower weight, and greater flexibility in design.
Plastic-made LED lighting fixtures are gaining popularity in the market.
The reason for this popularity lies in the fact that, aside from policies such as the inclusion of LED bulbs in the subsidy program last year, these bulbs represent the largest market for replacing traditional lighting sources in consumer applications; as a result, manufacturers are eager to invest in producing LED bulbs.
Why do so many manufacturers choose to produce LED bulbs? It’s because they see business opportunities in this area. LED bulbs have low power consumption, and since the heating temperature of their components isn’t very high, the requirements for the plastic used in their manufacture aren’t stringent. That’s why many manufacturers have started producing inexpensive plastic LED bulbs early this year. However, the plastics used in these inexpensive bulbs are usually not thermally conductive plastics, but rather ordinary plastics or engineering plastics.
Thermally conductive plastics have their own advantages.
It is known that there are three main materials used for heat dissipation in traditional lighting fixtures: metals like aluminum, ordinary plastics, and ceramics. Compared to metal materials, thermally conductive plastics offer better heat dissipation, lower weight, higher safety levels, and greater design flexibility. Compared to ceramics, they are more durable, easier to process, and allow for more creative design options. Compared to ordinary plastics, they have higher thermal conductivity and lower expansion coefficients.
High-color-rendering phosphor
As LEDs continue to make rapid inroads into the general lighting market, suppliers of LED phosphors are set to experience a period of rapid growth in their sales volumes. Industry forecasts suggest that the market for phosphors will increase from $353 million in 2014 to $442 million by 2019. Merck, a company based in Germany and well-known as a supplier of materials for display liquid crystals, is also at the forefront of LED phosphor technology worldwide.
Phosphors play a key role in enhancing the high color rendering index of LEDs.
With the expansion of LED use in indoor lighting applications, developing lighting fixtures that are better suited for such environments has become a priority for many companies. In fact, there is an ongoing effort within the industry to achieve high color rendering indices and high luminous efficiency in LED lighting products. Theoretically, however, high color rendering index and high luminous efficiency are contradictory aspects; they are inversely related to each other. Finding a balance between these two factors is the key to making breakthroughs in indoor lighting technology.
LED glue
Since last year, the LED industry has begun to recover, and the significant growth in the lighting sector has also boosted the LED adhesive industry. The end-users in the LED supply chain are aware that brand and distribution channels are key factors for success; for adhesive manufacturers, a strong brand identity is increasingly becoming essential for them to establish a foothold in the market. In this industry, which has a large number of companies involved, the market structure is gradually becoming clearer.
In particular, as the cost of LED lighting continues to decline, the domestic LED adhesive market is set to experience another period of rapid growth. Since 2012, there has been intense competition in terms of price among lighting products, with companies constantly seeking ways to reduce costs, and domestically produced accessories undoubtedly represent an effective option for achieving this goal.