Aerogels are a diverse class of porous, solid materials that exhibit an array of unique material properties. Aerogels are known for their ultralow densities (which range from 0.0011 to ~0.5 g cm-3). Essentially an aerogel is the dry, low-density, highly porous, solid framework of a gel that is isolated from its liquid component. Aerogels are open-porous (that is, the gas in the aerogel is not trapped inside solid pockets) and have pores in the range of <1 to 100 nanometers in diameter and usually <20 nm. Aerogels are produced by extracting the liquid component of a gel through supercritical drying or freeze-drying. This allows the liquid to be slowly dried without causing the solid matrix in the gel to collapse from capillary action, as would happen with conventional evaporation.
LLNL has a long history of developing aerogels. Because of their high surface area, they have unique physical, chemical, and mechanical properties, which makes aerogels a promising material for use in a variety of technical applications areas ranging from energy storage to catalysis. LLNL researchers are able to tailor the structure and properties to create strong, high-density aerogels or extremely transparent, ultralow-density aerogels and everything in between, depending on the requirements of the intended application. Initially, LLNL focused on silica aerogels. Later, LLNL researchers developed carbon-based aerogels for energy and environmental applications and also expanded to materials such as metal-carbon composite, boron nitride, metals and polymers, making the number of possible applications for this remarkable material especially vast.
Select Publications:
https://www.llnl.gov/article/46041/3d-printed-aerogel-electrodes-boost-energy-storage
https://leaf.llnl.gov/technology-capabilities/capacitive-deionization
Steiner, S.A. et al. (2023). Recipes and Designs for Aerogels. In: Aegerter, M.A., Leventis, N., Koebel, M., Steiner III, S.A. (eds) Springer Handbook of Aerogels. Springer Handbooks. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-27322-4_65
Chandrasekaran, S., Campbell, P.G., Baumann, T.F., Worsley, M.A. (2023). Nanocarbons: Diamond, Fullerene, Nanotube, Graphite, and Graphene Aerogels. In: Aegerter, M.A., Leventis, N., Koebel, M., Steiner III, S.A. (eds) Springer Handbook of Aerogels. Springer Handbooks. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-27322-4_36
Chandrasekaran, S., Lin, D., Li, Y., & Worsley, M. A. (2023). Aerogels, additive manufacturing, and energy storage. Joule, 7(5), 866-883. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joule.2023.03.021
Chandrasekaran, S., Forien, J. B., Campbell, P. G., Oakdale, J. S., Mancini, J. A., Worsley, M. A., & Biener, J. (2021). Carbon aerogels with integrated engineered macroporous architectures for improved mass transport. Carbon, 179, 125-132. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.carbon.2021.04.017
Biener, J. (2011) Advanced carbon aerogels for energy applications. Energy Environ. Sci., 2011,4, 656-667 (https://doi.org/10.1039/C0EE00627K)
Image Caption: Aerogels in general are a special class of open-cell foams that exhibit many fascinating properties, such as low mass densities, continuous porosities and high surface areas
- Ultrahigh surface area
- Ultralow density
- High strength
- Low thermal conductivity
Aerogels are among the most versatile materials available for technical applications due to their wide variety of exceptional properties.
- Energy storage devices
- Water purification
- High surface area catalysts
- Sorbents
- Sensors
- Insulation
Patent Information:
US Patent No. 8304465 High strength air-dried aerogels published 11/06/2012 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/8304465)
US Patent No. 8303883 Forming foam structures with carbon foam substrates published 11/06/2012 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/8303883)
US Patent No. 8580438 Monolithic three-dimensional electrochemical energy storage system on aerogel or nanotube scaffold published 11/12/2013 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/8580438)
US Patent No. 8778540 Monolithic three-dimensional electrochemical energy storage system on aerogel or nanotube scaffold published 7/15/2014 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/8778540)
US Patent No. 9852824 Methods for controlling pore morphology in aerogels using electric fields and products thereof published 12/26/2017 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/9852824)
US Patent No. 8968865 Methods of electrophoretic deposition for functionally graded porous nanostructures and systems thereof published 03/03/2015 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/8968865)
US Patent No. 8629076 High surface area silicon carbide-coated carbon aerogel published 01/14/2014 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/8629076)
US Patent No. 8809230 Porous substrates filled with nanomaterials published 08/19/2014 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/8809230)
US Patent No. 10479933 Extreme synthesis of crystalline aerogel materials from amorphous aerogel precursors published 11/19/2019 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/10479933)
US Patent No. 11718787 Extreme synthesis of crystalline aerogel materials from amorphous aerogel precursors published 08/08/2023 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/11718787)
US Patent No. 8993113 Graphene aerogels published 03/31/2015 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/8993113)
US Patent No. 10106418 Graphene aerogels published 10/23/2018 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/10106418)
US Patent No. 10106419 Method of making graphene nanocomposites by multiphase fluid dynamic dispersion published 10/23/2018 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/10106419)
US Patent No. 9314777 High surface area graphene-supported metal chalcogenide assembly published 04/19/2016 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/9314777)
US Patent No. 9631148 High surface area graphene-supported metal chalcogenide assembly published 04/25/2017 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/9631148)
US Patent No. 9543569 Graphene-supported metal oxide monolith published 01/10/2017 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/9543569)
US Patent 10109845 Methods for making graphene-supported metal oxide monolith published 10/23/2018 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/10109845)
US Patent No. 9601226 High-density 3D graphene-based monolith and related materials, methods, and devices published 03/21/2017 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/9601226)
US Patent No. 10014090 High-density carbon nanotube-based monolith and related materials, methods, and devices published 07/03/2018 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/10014090)
US Patent No. 9844762 Nanoporous metal-carbon composite published 12/19/2017 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/9844762)
US Patent No. 10399053 Nanoporous metal-carbon composite published 9/3/2019
(https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/10399053)
US Patent No. 9611146 Crystalline boron nitride aerogels published 04/04/2017 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/9611146)
US Patent No. 9840414 Crystalline boron nitride aerogels published 12/12/2017 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/9840414)
US Patent No. 9870871 Graphene macro-assembly-fullerene composite for electrical energy storage published 01/16/2018 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/9870871)
US Patent No. 10633255 Graphene macro-assembly-fullerene composite for electrical energy storage published 04/28/2020 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/10633255)
US Patent No. 9776156 Nitrogen-doped carbon aerogels for electrical energy storage published 10/03/2017 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/9776156)
US Patent No. 10399054 Nitrogen-doped carbon aerogels for electrical energy storage published 09/03/2019 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/10399054)
US Patent No. 10086431 Porous materials via freeze-casting of metal salt solutions published 10/02/2018 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/10086431)
US Patent No. 11376657 Porous materials via freeze-casting of metal salt solutions published 07/05/2022 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/11376657)
US Patent No. 10233087 Highly crystalline 3D graphene published 03/19/2019 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/10233087)
US Patent No. 10276286 Polymer-carbon composites for temperature-dependent electrical switching applications published 04/30/2019 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/10276286)
US Patent No. 10647580 Three-dimensional deterministic graphene architectures formed using three-dimensional templates published 05/12/2020 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/10647580)
US Patent No. 11596916 Tailoring of pores in aerogels using 3D printed structures published 03/07/2023 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/11596916)
US Patent Application No. 2023/0106574 TAILORING OF PORES IN AEROGELS USING 3D PRINTED STRUCTURES published 04/06/2023 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/20230106574)
US Patent No. 10379439 Architected three dimensional graphene via additive manufacturing published 08/13/2019 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/10379439)
US Patent No. 11,880,133 Architected three dimensional graphene via additive manufacturing published 01/23/2024 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/11880133)
US Patent No. 10391466 Fabrication of nanoporous aerogels via freeze substitution of nanowire suspensions published 08/27/2019 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/10391466)
US Patent No. 11617998 Metal boride aerogels published 04/04/2023 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/11617998)
US Patent No. 11938545 Ultralight conductive metallic aerogels published 03/26/2024 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/11938545)
US Patent No. 11884830 Base-catalyzed sol-gel inks for direct ink writing of high resolution hierarchically porous carbon aerogels published 01/30/2024 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/11884830)
US Patent No. 11715607 Graphene macro-assembly-fullerene composite for electrical energy storage published 08/01/2023 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/11715607)
US Patent Application 2023/0312829 TRANSPARENT POLYMER AEROGELS published 10/05/2023 (https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/20230312829)
Current stage of technology development: TRL 2-4