Large-Scale Roll-to-Roll Manufacturing of Flexible, Hydrophobic, and Fire-Resistant Mica/SiO<sub>2</sub> Nanofiber Aerogel Paper.

Belay, Hayelom; Guo, Yongshi; Liu, Mingyu; Kumah, Charles; Tian, Xuwang; Ma, Yanyan; Yu, Xi; Shen, Jiajia et al. · Nano Lett · 2025

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

Oxide ceramic aerogels offer exceptional thermal insulation and chemical stability but face limitations due to brittleness, moisture sensitivity, and costly, complex manufacturing. Here, we present a roll-to-roll method for producing flexible, hydrophobic, and fire-resistant silica/mica hybrid aerogel paper. The process bypasses the need for expensive polymer sacrificial templates and high temperature sintering, instead forming aerogels directly through electrospinning stabilized tetraethyl orthosilicate and a synthetic fluorophlogopite sol. By incorporating synthetic mica nanosheets (SMNS) into SiO<sub>2</sub> nanofibers (NFs), the resulting aerogels achieve a low thermal conductivity of 0.022 W/m·K and density of 5 mg/cm<sup>3</sup> and withstands temperatures >1800 °C. It also exhibits 99% UV blocking, mechanical robustness, and superior hydrophobicity, overcoming key challenges in ceramic aerogel applications. This approach enables scalable, cost-effective production of high-performance ceramic aerogels.