Bioinspired Synthesis of Monolithic and Layered Aerogels

Han, Xiao; Hassan, Khalil T.; Harvey, Alan; Kulijer, Dejan; Oila, Adrian; Hunt, Michael R.C.; Siller, Lidija

Abstract

Aerogels are the least dense and most porous materials known to man, with potential applications from lightweight superinsulators to smart energy materials. To date their use has been seriously hampered by their synthesis methods, which are laborious and expensive. Taking inspiration from the life cycle of the damselfly, a novel ambient pressure‐drying approach is demonstrated in which instead of employing low‐surface‐tension organic solvents to prevent pore collapse during drying, sodium bicarbonate solution is used to generate pore‐supporting carbon dioxide in situ, significantly reducing energy, time, and cost in aerogel production. The generic applicability of this readily scalable new approach is demonstrated through the production of granules, monoliths, and layered solids with a number of precursor materials.

Citation

Han, X., Hassan, K. T., Harvey, A., Kulijer, D., Oila, A., Hunt, M. R., & Siller, L. (2018). Bioinspired Synthesis of Monolithic and Layered Aerogels. Advanced Materials, 30(23), Article 1706294. https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.201706294

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Mar 7, 2018
• Online Publication Date: Apr 25, 2018
• Publication Date: Jun 1, 2018
• Deposit Date: Apr 16, 2018
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 17, 2018
• Journal: Advanced Materials
• Print ISSN: 0935-9648
• Electronic ISSN: 1521-4095
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 30
• Issue: 23
• Article Number: 1706294
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.201706294
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1334398