Silicacellulose hybrid aerogels for thermal and acoustic insulation applications

Silica⿿cellulose aerogels were successfully developed from recycled cellulose fibres and methoxytrimethylsilane (MTMS) silica precursor for the first time. The developed silica⿿cellulose aerogels showed the super-hydrophobicity with an average water contact angle of 151°. Their thermal conductivity was approximately 0.04 W/mK. Moreover, the thermal degradation temperature for the cellulose component of the silica⿿cellulose aerogels showed a 25 °C improvement over those for cellulose aerogels. The sound absorption coefficients of the silica⿿cellulose aerogels with a 10 mm thickness were 0.39⿿0.50, better than those of cellulose aerogels (0.30⿿0.40) and commercial polystyrene foams. When the cellulose fibre concentration increases from 1.0 to 4.0 wt.%, the compressive Young⿿s modulus of the silica⿿cellulose aerogels can be enhanced 160%, up to 139 KPa. This work provides a facile approach to fabricate cost-effective and promising silica⿿cellulose aerogels with industrial dimensions for thermal and acoustic insulation applications.