Views: 5 Author: Huatao Company Publish Time: 2023-09-22 Origin: Huatao Company
What is Aerogel?
The most common type of aerogel, silica aerogel, is derived from a solgel reaction in which the liquid filled pores have been replaced with gas. This results in an extremely low-density solid that can be imparted with several remarkable properties such as hydrophobicity.
Why is Aerogel a Good Thermal Insulator?
The solid component in silica aerogel consists of tiny, three-dimensional, intertwined clusters. They comprise only 3% of the volume and are very poor conductors. Air in microscopic pores make up the remaining 97% of aerogel’s volume. This air has very little room to move, inhibiting both convection and gas-phase conduction. These characteristics make aerogel the world’s lowest density solid and most effective thermal insulator.
How aerogels work
Aerogel is a special material with a very low density and highly porous structure. Its working principle can be explained in the following aspects:
Low Density: The main characteristic of aerogels is their extremely low density. It consists of a network of nanoscale solid particles whose pores are filled with gas. Because the solid component of aerogel is very light, its density is very low, usually only several or dozens of times that of air.
Porous structure: The solid components of aerogels have a highly porous structure, and the size of these pores is usually on the nanometer scale. This porous structure gives aerogels many unique properties. For example, it can effectively insulate heat, sound and shock.
High specific surface area: Due to the porous structure of aerogel, it has a very high specific surface area. Specific surface area refers to the surface area per unit mass or unit volume. The high specific surface area of aerogels enables them to adsorb and store large amounts of gases or liquids. This makes aerogels potentially useful in applications such as adsorbents, catalysts and energy storage.
Thermal insulation: Due to its porous structure and low thermal conductivity, airgel has excellent thermal insulation properties. Airgel can prevent heat conduction and reduce heat loss or entry. This makes aerogels widely used in fields such as thermal insulation materials, building insulation and thermal energy utilization.
Overall, aerogels work based on their low density, porous structure and high specific surface area. This gives aerogels many unique properties, giving them broad application prospects in many fields.
