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Aerogel materials have broad application prospects in the market of building thermal insulation materials because of their high porosity, strong compression resistance and low thermal conductivity. In this paper, Al2O3-SiO2 aerogel composite thermal insulation materials with different SiO2 content were prepared by sol-gel method using tetraethyl orthosilicate and sec butanol aluminum as raw materials. The effects of SiO2 doping amount on the crystal structure, micro morphology, mechanical properties and thermal conductivity of composite aerogels were studied. The results showed that Al2O3-SiO2 aerogel was mainly composed of polycrystalline boehmite. SiO2 doping inhibited the formation of γ-Al2O3 phase and hindered the occurrence of hydroxyl condensation reaction. H in AlO—H group was replaced by Si, forming a more stable Al—O—Si bond. Al2O3-SiO2 aerogel showed an open porous structure, and the doping of SiO2 improved the pore orientation of the aerogel, reducing the pore size and distributing evenly. With the increase of SiO2 doping, the compressive strength and specific surface area of Al2O3-SiO2 aerogel first increased and then slightly decreased, and the thermal conductivity first decreased and then increased. When the doping amount of SiO2 was 9 mol %, the maximum compressive strength of the aerogel was 40.92 MPa, which was 58.97% higher than that of the undoped aerogel. The maximum specific surface area was 257.33 m²/g, the lowest thermal conductivity was 0.022 W/（m·K）, and the thermal insulation performance was the best. In summary, the optimal doping amount of SiO2 was 9 mol%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon nanotube aerogel is a kind of carbon nanotube with dispersed properties. In this paper, carbon nanotube aerogels were prepared by independent research and development. The carbon nanotube aerogels/natural rubber composites were prepared by traditional crafts. The mechanical properties and thermal conductivity of the as-prepared composites were studied. The results suggest that the tensile strength, tear strength and thermal conductivity of the composites are 47%, 52% and 49.9%, respectively higher than those of the carbon black/natural rubber composites, and reveal the good dispersion characteristics and broad application prospects of the carbon nanotube aerogels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]