The Features of Aerogel and Prospects for Large-scale Production

Abstract

Aerogels play a vital role in industrial applications, attracting significant scientific interest due to their low density, excellent thermal insulation properties, and other unique characteristics. These features have motivated extensive research into the material itself and the expansion of its practical applications. This article begins with a broad overview of the development history of aerogels. It then introduces their fundamental structure and key characteristics—notably, their nanoporous architecture, which results in extremely low density. The Rayleigh scattering effect is introduced to explain their optical behavior, while a microscopic analysis is provided to elucidate their exceptional thermal properties, fully demonstrating their superior physical performance. Subsequently, the article focuses on methods to reduce the production costs of aerogels to enable large-scale commercial manufacturing. Finally, a number of practical application cases are briefly summarized. The overarching aim is to offer perspectives on the future mass production of aerogels based on their structure, properties, real-world applicability, and cost-effective preparation strategies.