Processing of polymer-derived, aerogel-filled, SiC foams for high-temperature insulation
Abstract
Porous polymer‐derived ceramics (PDCs) are outperforming materials when low‐density and thermal inertia are required. In this frame, thermal insulating foams such as silicon carbide (SiC) ones possess intriguing requisites for aerospace applications, but their thermal conductivity is affected by gas phase heat transfer and, in the high temperature region, by radiative mechanisms. Owing to the versatility of the PDC route, we present a synthesis pathway to embed PDC SiC aerogels within the open cells of a SiC foam, thus sensibly decreasing the thermal conductivity at 1000°C from 0.371 W·m −1 K −1 to 0.243 W·m −1 K −1 . In this way, it was possible to couple the mechanical properties of the foam with the insulating ability of the aerogels. The presented synthesis was optimized by selecting, among acetone, n‐hexane, and cyclohexane, the proper solvent for the gelation step of the aerogel formation to obtain a proper mesoporous colloidal structure that, after ceramization at 1000°C, presents a specific surface area of 193 m 2 ·g −1 . The so‐obtained ceramic composites present a lowest density of 0.18 g·cm −3 , a porosity of 90% and a compressive strength of 0.76 MPa.
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BibTeX
@article{zambotti2026processing,
title = {{Processing of polymer-derived, aerogel-filled, SiC foams for high-temperature insulation}},
author = {Andrea Zambotti and Emanuel Ionescu and Nicola Gargiulo and Domenico Caputo and Cekdar Vakifahmetoglu and Balanand Santhosh and Mattia Biesuz and Gian Domenico Sorarù},
journal = {Journal of the American Ceramic Society},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1111/jace.19118},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-05789785v1},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Processing of polymer-derived, aerogel-filled, SiC foams for high-temperature insulation
AU - Andrea Zambotti
AU - Emanuel Ionescu
AU - Nicola Gargiulo
AU - Domenico Caputo
AU - Cekdar Vakifahmetoglu
AU - Balanand Santhosh
AU - Mattia Biesuz
AU - Gian Domenico Sorarù
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/09
JO - Journal of the American Ceramic Society
DO - 10.1111/jace.19118
UR - https://hal.science/hal-05789785v1
AB - Porous polymer‐derived ceramics (PDCs) are outperforming materials when low‐density and thermal inertia are required. In this frame, thermal insulating foams such as silicon carbide (SiC) ones possess intriguing requisites for aerospace applications, but their thermal conductivity is affected by gas phase heat transfer and, in the high temperature region, by radiative mechanisms. Owing to the versatility of the PDC route, we present a synthesis pathway to embed PDC SiC aerogels within the open cells of a SiC foam, thus sensibly decreasing the thermal conductivity at 1000°C from 0.371 W·m −1 K −1 to 0.243 W·m −1 K −1 . In this way, it was possible to couple the mechanical properties of the foam with the insulating ability of the aerogels. The presented synthesis was optimized by selecting, among acetone, n‐hexane, and cyclohexane, the proper solvent for the gelation step of the aerogel formation to obtain a proper mesoporous colloidal structure that, after ceramization at 1000°C, presents a specific surface area of 193 m 2 ·g −1 . The so‐obtained ceramic composites present a lowest density of 0.18 g·cm −3 , a porosity of 90% and a compressive strength of 0.76 MPa.
SN - 0002-7820
SN - 1551-2916
ER -