Microfluidics Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Technology (Medical, Non-medical), By Application (Lab-on-a-chip, Organs-on-chips), By Material (Polymer, Silicon, Glass, PDMS), By Region, And Segment Forecasts, 2021 - 2028

Report Overview

The global microfluidics market size was valued at USD 17.9 billion in 2020 and is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.3% from 2021 to 2028. The market is majorly driven by the rising number of clinical studies for cell-based therapies. Rapid demand for low-volume sample analysis, high-throughput screening methodologies, In Vitro Diagnostics (IVD), and development of advanced lab-on-a-chip technologies are collectively contributing to market growth. Moreover, microfluidics offers a high return on investment and helps in cost control by minimizing errors.

Pre-hospital analysis like routine blood glucose level check can be done at home, thereby reducing the number of hospital visits and stays. The point-of-care diagnostics introduced by various market players led to decreased hospital visits and early disease diagnosis. With advanced technologies, industry players now differentiate their products using minimally invasive features along with speed and accuracy. Microfluidics has thus made its mark in the IVD market.

Moreover, miniaturization is crucial for microfluidics to be potentially applied across wearable devices. The concept of incorporating microfluidics to manufacture pocket-sized/wearable devices has encouraged various large companies such as F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd., BD (Becton Dickinson and Company), and Abbott to expand their microfluidics portfolio across clinical, Point-of-Care (POC), and veterinary diagnostics. Other key vendors include Agilent Technologies, Inc.; Illumina, Inc.; and Fluidigm Corp.

The application of microfluidics is growing in the field of diagnostics, especially in POC diagnostics. This is also supplemented by microfluidics-integrated biosensor technologies that are expected to enhance POC diagnostics. The combination of microfluidic components with POC devices is largely focused on achieving sensitivity, stability, accuracy, affordability, and obtaining minimally invasive POC technology.

Rapid diagnosis is still of paramount importance in the current COVID-19 management. The longer timelines required by existing commercialized COVID-19 tests coupled with time taken by large-scale laboratories and hospitals to get back to the patient with the results has paved way for point-of-care testing of COVID-19 patients. Microfluidics is well suited for the development of COVID-19 point-of-care testing as, it offers rapid turnaround times, exhibits a clinically relevant detection limit, and results in the development of cost-effective tests.

Technology Insights

The medical technology segment dominated the market and accounted for the largest revenue share of 83.3% in 2020. Microfluidics is gaining significant traction in Point-of-Care (POC) diagnostics since it is associated with several advantages that facilitate the development of novel POC diagnostics. These benefits are gradually being leveraged to develop POC devices for the diagnosis and detection of a variety of conditions, varying from cancer to infectious diseases.

PCR and RT-PCR have emerged as the key contributor to the medical technology segment’s revenue, the former accounting for more than 30% in 2020. PCR is one of the most popular and robust techniques used in molecular diagnostics. DNA amplification can be categorized as isothermal and non-isothermal, among which isothermal techniques are compatible with the integration of microfluidics. On the other hand, PCR is the most popular non-isothermal DNA amplification technology applied in microfluidic devices.

The non-medical segment is expected to expand at a CAGR of 14.4% from 2021 to 2028. Microfluidics finds applications in the non-medical segment for extraction of crude oil in porous rocks, detection of plant pathogens, and producing gas bubbles of different sizes. Fluid flow through porous media is difficult and complex to analyze optically.

Crude oil flow in rocks is restricted by factors such as tortuosity and connectivity. In addition, the flow is affected by difficult interactions between geometry and surface of pore structure and the fluids themselves. Microfluidic technology is perfect for the development of techniques to extract crude oil that is stuck in porous rock, mixed with pollutants.

Application Insights

The lab-on-a-chip segment dominated the market and accounted for the largest revenue share of 38.5% in 2020. Lab-on-a-chip provides high speed for detection along with maintaining the required sensitivity during the DNA or RNA amplification and detection procedures; making it suitable for molecular biology applications. The lab-on-chip allows rapid sequencing of DNA probes. As DNA amplification applying the PCR technique depends on thermal cycles, the lab-on-chip conducts high-speed thermal shifts at the microscale level.

On the other hand, lab-on-a-chip research has recently shown potential in cell biology. These systems validate the capability to regulate cells at the single-cell level while dealing with a huge volume of cells within a short span of time. Opto Reader, a fast-optical detector provided by Elveflow helps in high throughput detection and isolation of cells. These systems are also used in stem cell differentiation, micro patch-clamp, cell sorting, and high-speed flow cytometry.

On the other hand, the organs-on-chips segment is expected to witness a CAGR of 21.9% over the forecast period. Organ-on-chip is a functional microchip incorporated with living cells that are able to mimic various processes in the body, such as peristalsis, infection, and breathing. These models play a major role in drug discovery and development.

The National Center for Advancing Translational Science (NCATS) through its Tissue Chip for Drug Screening initiative along with the FDA and other National Institute of Health centers and institutes focuses on the drug discovery process by creating human tissue chips that deliver accurate representations of human organs.

Material Insights

The Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) segment dominated the microfluidics market and accounted for the largest revenue share of 34.7% in 2020. Polydimethylsiloxane has gained significant popularity among other polymers, particularly in microfluidic devices with rapid prototyping. This is attributed to the high acceptance of these polymers among academic professionals, mainly due to the easy fabrication and affordability associated with the material.

Additionally, novel PDMS surface modifications are being introduced in the market to address challenges arising from hydrophobicity associated with PDMS. Hydrophobicity makes the operation of microchannels challenging in aqueous solutions, which is attributed to the fact that such analytes get adsorbed on the PDMS surface, in turn interfering with the analysis.

Whereas glass pegged the 2^nd position in terms of revenue generated in 2020 and is projected to witness a CAGR of 14.4%. Glass-based microfluidics devices are majorly used in analysis applications with elevated temperatures and organic solvents. Glass is an amorphous material that is electrically insulated and optically transparent.

Standard photolithography and wet and dry etching methods are used for processing glass-based microfluidics devices. For the development of etched glass channels with rounded sidewalls, special etching techniques are employed for designing microfluidic devices.

Regional Insights

North America dominated the market and accounted for the largest revenue share of 43.2% in 2020. Research institutes are showing extensive participation across the development of novel microfluidic devices, which is expected to maintain regional dominance in the global market. The U.S. emerged as a key contributor to the region’s dominance through the study period. In addition to well-established players, the country also harbors various emerging companies that are engaged in manufacturing microfluidics products.

For instance, Microfluidics is a U.S.-based company that offers proprietary microfluidics technology, namely Microfluidizer. This technology is incorporated for manufacturing high shear fluid processors designed to achieve efficient cell disruption, nanoemulsions, and reduction of particle size. Contrastingly, in Asia Pacific, the market is anticipated to witness a lucrative growth rate of 17.1% over the forecast period.

The market for medical diagnostics, high throughput screening, and biosensing is growing in China owing to increasing government support for advanced infrastructure and strong intellectual property rights ownership. The other driving factor is the ever-increasing need for healthcare services, which increased the demand for medical diagnostics. Being a developing country, China has huge potential for the market.

Key Companies & Market Share Insights

Companies are initiating facility expansions, collaborations, and introducing new products to strengthen their market position. For instance, in June 2020, Illumina announced its latest cohort of startup entities expected to commence operations in collaboration with the company’s teams across San Francisco and London. This cohort includes a high-throughput microfluidics startup entity-WellSIM Biomedical Technologies, Inc. The company manufactures high-throughput automated processors based on microfluidics, designed for isolation and analysis of exosomes. Some of the prominent players in the microfluidics market include:

• Illumina, Inc.

• F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd

• PerkinElmer, Inc.

• Agilent Technologies, Inc.

• Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc.

• Danaher Corporation

• Life Technologies Corporation

• Abbott Laboratories

• Thermo Fisher Scientific

• Qiagen

• Biomérieux

• Elveflow

• Cellix Ltd.

• Micronit Micro Technologies B.V.

• Fluidigm Corporation

Microfluidics Market Report Scope

Segments Covered in the Report

This report forecasts revenue growth at global, regional, and country levels and provides an analysis of the latest industry trends in each of the sub-segments from 2017 to 2028. For the purpose of this study, Grand View Research has segmented the global microfluidics market report on the basis of technology, application, material, and region:

• Technology Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2028)

  • Medical/Healthcare

    • PCR & RT-PCR

    • Gel Electrophoresis

    • Microarrays

    • ELISA

    • Others

  • Non-Medical

• Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2028)

  • Lab-on-a-chip

    • Medical

    • Non-Medical

  • Organs-on-chips

    • Medical

    • Non-Medical

  • Continuous flow microfluidics

    • Medical

    • Non-Medical

  • Optofluidics and microfluidics

    • Medical

    • Non-Medical

  • Acoustofluidics and microfluidics

    • Medical

    • Non-Medical

  • Electrophoresis and microfluidics

    • Medical

    • Non-Medical

• Material Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2028)

  • Silicon

  • Glass

  • Polymer

  • PDMS

  • Others

• Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2028)

  • North America

    • U.S.

    • Canada

  • Europe

    • U.K.

    • Germany

    • France

    • Italy

  • Asia Pacific

    • India

    • China

    • Japan

    • Australia

  • Latin America

    • Brazil

    • Mexico

  • Middle East & Africa

    • South Africa

    • Saudi Arabia