Super-hydrophobic hexamethyl-disilazane modified ZrO₂–SiO₂ aerogels with excellent thermal stability

Abstract

Hexamethyl-disilazane (HMDS) is introduced to replace the hydroxyl groups of ZrO₂–SiO₂ aerogels (ZSAs) to form inert methyl siloxy surface groups and produce SiO₂ particles as the “pinning” particles in air at elevated temperatures. Thus, HMDS/ZSAs exhibit an excellent thermal stability and super-hydrophobic properties with a contact angle of 154°.