{
  "abstract": "Understanding the propagation of elastic waves in ultra-light porous solids is essential for linking their microstructure to macroscopic properties and mechanical performance. In this work, we present first an experimental study of longitudinal sound velocity in aerogels spanning a wide range of chemical structures and mesoscopic architectures, including polyurethane, polylactic acid, polyimide, flexible organo-silica, classical silica, and phenolic (resorcinol-formaldehyde) aerogels. Compression wave velocities were measured and correlated with bulk density to establish scaling relations across aerogel material families. While classical elasticity implies direct coupling between sound velocity in isotropic solids and elastic moduli, we then examine the extent to which such continuum relations remain valid in aerogels, whose structure is governed by hierarchical porosity, nanoscale connectivity, and bending-dominated network mechanics. Finally, we suggest measuring the Young modulus of aerogels from the acoustic wave speed as a non-destructive testing alternative.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Mechanics of Solids, Surfaces & Systems, University of Twente",
    "Cellular Materials Laboratory (CellMat), Faculty of Science, University of Valladolid",
    "Institute for Frontier Materials on Earth and in Space, German Aerospace Center (DLR)",
    "Center for Applied Energy Research",
    "HUN-REN-DE Mechanisms of Complex Homogeneous and Heterogeneous Chemical Reactions Research Group, Department of Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry, University of Debrecen",
    "Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences, University of Southampton"
  ],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 9,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Ameya Rege"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Beatriz Merillas"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Max Hopp-Zinke"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Christian Scherdel"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        4
      ],
      "name": "Petra Herman"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Marina Schwan"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Nina H. Borzecka"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        4
      ],
      "name": "József Kalmár"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5
      ],
      "name": "Atul Bhaskar"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/92qskrdtv4y9h.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1038/s41598-026-62859-8",
  "fulltext_url": "https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-62859-8",
  "id": "92qskrdtv4y9h",
  "issns": [
    "2045-2322"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-62859-8",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "journal",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "lcc",
      "Q"
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      "lcc",
      "R"
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    [
      "openalex",
      "1607|Aerogels and thermal insulation"
    ]
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  "openalex": "W7171122007",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-026-62859-8_reference.pdf",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-07-01",
  "publisher": "Nature Portfolio",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/92qskrdtv4y9h.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-01T14:21:19Z",
      "native_id": "0b3577ecc46943ccb37e4fbaebfdec4b",
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      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-62859-8"
    }
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  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "chemistry",
      "origin": "openalex:1607|Aerogels and thermal insulation",
      "subfield": "physical"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Acoustic wave speed in aerogels across material classes: density scaling from theory and experiments",
  "title_text": "Acoustic wave speed in aerogels across material classes: density scaling from theory and experiments",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-03T14:20:46Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/92qskrdtv4y9h",
  "venue": "Scientific Reports",
  "versions": []
}