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Carbon aerogels (CAs) are desirable for thermal protection in aerospace because of their lightweight and high‐temperature insulation characteristic; however, their intrinsic brittleness and flaw sensitivity easily trigger catastrophic failure when resisting high‐frequency thermal shocks or complex mechanical stresses. Compression is the predominant load applied on aerogels by aerodynamic pressure and pre‐tightening force; therefore, the structural elasticity and exceptional capability to keep thermal performance under impact stress are crucial in deciding the actual availability of aerogels. This review presents the recent progress in newly resilient CAs for thermal protection, focusing on reliable structural stability, thermal stability, and thermal superinsulation property. The influence law of microstructures on heat transfer behaviors is first investigated, followed by construction strategies for adiabatic CAs, emphasizing the recoverable deformability resulting from increased continuity of building blocks from 0D nanoparticles to 1D nanofibers/nanotubes and then to 2D nanosheets. Moreover, the optimization of thermal stability in high‐temperature aerobic environments and thermal insulation performance are discussed. Finally, it raises current challenges and further opportunities for CAs toward better properties and brighter prospects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advanced ceramic aerogel materials with a performance combining sufficient mechanical robustness and splendid high-temperature resistance are urgently needed as thermal insulators in harsh environments. However, the practical applications of ceramic aerogel materials are always limited by poor mechanical performance and degradation under thermal shock. Here, we report the facile creation of lamellar multiarch structured ceramic nanofibrous aerogels that are simultaneously ultrastrong, superelastic, and high temperature resistant by combining ZrO 2 -Al 2 O 3 nanofibers with Al(H 2 PO 4 ) 3 matrices. The resulting ZrO 2 -Al 2 O 3 nanofibrous aerogels exhibit the integrated properties of rapid recovery from a strain of 90%, high compression strength of more than 1100 kPa (at a strain of 90%), high fatigue resistance, and temperature-invariant superelasticity. Moreover, the all-ceramic component feature also provides the ceramic nanofibrous aerogels with high-temperature resistance up to 1300 °C and thermal insulation performance with low thermal conductivity (0.0322 W m -1 K -1 ). These superior performances make the ceramic aerogels ideal for high-temperature thermal insulation materials in extreme conditions.

The development of inorganic membranous catalysts with both large mesopores and superb flexibility is extremely favorable for the enhancement of their catalytic oxidation activity for the degradation of antibiotic pollutants in wastewater via sulfate radical-based advanced oxidation processes; however, there still exists a huge challenge for inorganic materials to simultaneously realize these two properties. Herein, metallic copper-doped carbon/silica nanofibrous membranes (Cu@C/SiO2 NFMs) with large mesopores, superb flexibility, and robust mechanical strength were fabricated through a sol-gel electrospinning and subsequent in situ carbonization reduction method. The synthesized Cu nanoparticles were homogeneously distributed throughout the mesoporous C/SiO2 nanofiber matrix, which enabled the resultant Cu@C/SiO2 NFMs to be applied as heterogeneous catalysts, and their catalytic performance was systematically assessed through activating persulfate for the elimination of tetracycline hydrochloride (TCH) in water. The fabricated Cu@C/SiO2 NFMs provided outstanding catalytic performance towards TCH with a high removal efficiency of 95% in 40 min and a rapid removal speed of 0.054 min-1. Moreover, the membranes could be facilely recycled through being directly separated from water without any post-processing. Such a facile strategy for preparing mesoporous and flexible metal-doped inorganic nanofibrous membranes may offer novel insights for designing new types of heterogeneous catalysts for antibiotic-containing wastewater treatment or other potential applications.