Polyimide/SiO2 composite aerogels with excellent thermal and sound insulation properties prepared by confined filling method

• Published in: Materials letters 2024-01, Vol.354, p.135402, Article 135402
• Main Authors: Shao, Huilong, Fei, Zhifang, Li, Xiaohua, Zhang, Zhen, Zhao, Shuang, Li, Kunfeng, Yang, Zichun
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Amorphous materials; Nanocomposites; Porous materials; Thermal properties
• ISSN: 0167-577X; 1873-4979
• DOI: 10.1016/j.matlet.2023.135402

[Display omitted] •A novel type of PI/SIO2 composite aerogel was prepared by a confined filling strategy.•The PI/SiO2 composite aerogels exhibit ultra-low density and super thermal insulation.•The sound insulation and mechanical properties are significantly enhanced owing to the “honeycomb-like” structure. Aerogels have enormous potential in integrated thermal insulation and noise reduction applications. According to the knowledge of the favorable mechanical and acoustic properties of honeycomb structures. We employed anisotropic “honeycomb-like” polyimide (PI) aerogels as the matrix and utilized a confined filling strategy to directionally filled continuous SiO2 aerogels into the PI aerogel matrix. This resulted in the creation of an exceptional organic–inorganic composite aerogel (PISis) with outstanding thermal and acoustic insulation performance. The radial thermal conductivity of PISis ranged from 22.37 to 27.65 mW·m−1·K−1, and the initial decomposition temperature was approximately 524–557 °C. In the frequency range of 500–6300 Hz, the average sound transmission loss (STL) of the 18 mm thick composite material reached 30.67 ∼ 31.89 dB, and the compressive strength at 10 % strain is 0.416 MPa. The PISis exhibits a density ranging from 0.1012 to 0.1302 g/cm3. These make it an ideal lightweight, high-strength, and efficient material for thermal and acoustic insulation.