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Ceramic aerogels are promising candidates for high-temperature thermal resistance and thermal insulation materials. However, their application can be restricted by their brittleness when exposed to harsh conditions. Herein, this study has developed a novel synthesis process based on a sol-gel method and carbothermal reduction-nitridation to produce a porous TiN composite aerogel from an organic/inorganic hybrid. The resulting TiN displays a polyhedral particle size of around 30–60 nm with nanoscale pores. In addition, the TiN aerogel demonstrates a high BET-specific surface area of 653.42 m2/g and a very low thermal conductivity of 0.046 W/(m·K). Furthermore, the TiN aerogel composite displays a good thermal difference with no shrinkage and cracks of the morphology during the butane blazing torch at 1300 °C for 10 min under air environment, demonstrating its excellent thermal insulation property and anti-oxidation characteristics. The gas-solid reaction mechanism of TiN aerogel based on the Gibbs free energy calculations is also proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flexible SiC nanowire aerogel felt has excellent foldability, high-temperature resistance, and thermal insulation properties. However, the large-scale and high-efficiency production of SiC nanofiber aerogel felt remains a challenge. In this work, a three-dimensional network-structured short-chopped carbon fiber felt was used as a template for preparing SiC nanowire aerogel felt. The short-chopped carbon fibers were combed and dispersed using an airflow in a carding machine to obtain the desired felt. This method enables rapid and uniform preparation of carbon fiber felt, enhancing the efficiency of SiC nanowire aerogel felt production. The experimental results showed that the aerogel felt was mainly composed of β-SiC nanowires with a density of 5.29 g/cm3. Additionally, the SiC nanofiber aerogel felt exhibited remarkable superelasticity and low thermal conductivity (0.013 W/m·K). This research contributes to the practical application of flexible SiC nanowire aerogel felt in the field of thermal insulation. • Carding machine dispersed carbon fiber. • Fabrication of large size SiC nanofiber aerogel felt. • SiC nanofiber aerogel felt has flexibility and low thermal conductivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anisotropic layered porous ceramics are crucial to satisfy the demand for devices with directional functions. However, challenges, such as complicated preparation processes and difficulties in regulating the oriented structure, severely limit their application. Here, multilayered mullite ceramics (MLMCs) with specific porosities and strongly anisotropy properties, were prepared by designing porous thin-layered units and an interlayer layout, in combination with a simple gel-casting. Benefiting from the suitable slurry properties, the samples did not show obvious defects, and a perfect bonding was observed between the layers. The optimized MLMCs exhibited a porosity of 65.12%, the differences in compressive and flexural strengths of 14 (± 0.7) and 5 (± 0.2) MPa in different pressure directions respectively, and the anisotropy factor of thermal conductivity up to 0.98, as well as exhibited good high temperature thermal insulation properties. Ultimately, the MLMCs formed transverse heat conductor and longitudinal heat insulation heat-transfer patterns, with promising applications in thermal insulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Double ceramic layer (DCL) TBCs consisting of a top 20 wt.% Al 2 O 3 -7YSZ layer and a bottom 7YSZ layer were desirably designed to achieve preferable performance while the thermal, mechanical and thermal cyclic properties were comprehensively investigated. Compared to the conventional 7YSZ TBCs, the thermal insulation properties of the DCL coating were significantly improved due to the increased oxygen vacancy concentration induced by Al 2 O 3 addition while the thickness of the thermally grown oxides was diminished by the decreased oxygen diffusion rate. Furthermore, the improved fracture toughness of the DCL coating also prolonged the thermal cyclic life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-performance thermally insulating aerogel with low density, high porosity, and low thermal conductivity characteristics was widely used in heat insulation. However, the large-scale application of aerogel was still limited by its brittleness and infrared radiation transparency at high-temperature. Fiber composite aerogel had achieved significant progress, but its anti-oxidation ability was poor, and its thermal insulation required further improvement at ultra-high temperatures. Herein, inspired by the structure of elytra, nanoparticle fiber (NF) was prepared by electrospinning of coaxial fiber loaded with opacifier and antioxidant nanoparticles. The NF was incorporated into the SiBCN aerogel to prepare NF/SiBCN ceramic fiber aerogel. The mechanical properties were improved by fiber networks. The shell structure increased the antioxidant properties. Heat conduction and heat convection were suppressed by the aerogel, while heat radiation was reduced by the coaxial fiber. The results showed that the ceramic fiber aerogel exhibited superior mechanical, antioxidant, and ultra-low thermal conductivity properties. • A novel 'particle/fiber/aerogel' composites were constructed for thermal insulation. • The composites exhibited fire resistance and ultralow thermal conductivity at 1300 °C. • The composites had low density and excellent mechanical properties. • Coaxial fiber had self-healing and anti-oxidation properties at ultra-high temperatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]