Modulation of Thermal Insulation and Mechanical Property of Silica Aerogel Thermal Insulation Coatings

Abstract

In this paper, high-performance silica aerogel (SiO2 aerogel) thermal insulation coatings were obtained and profited from the excellent thermal insulation capability of SiO2 aerogel. The comprehensive properties and thermal insulation mechanism of the coatings were investigated via Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), contact angle, and temperature difference tests. Results showed that there was a contradiction between thermal insulation and mechanical property in this coating after the addition amount and proportion of silica aerogel, hollow glass microsphere, glass fibers, aqueous acrylic emulsion, and dispersing agents were optimized carefully. When the mass ratio of hollow glass to SiO2 aerogel microspheres was 1:1, the overall performance of the coating was the best with thermal conductivity of 0.050 W/(m·K) and adhesive strength of 1024 kPa.