New BN/SiOC aerogel composites fabricated by the sol-gel method with excellent thermal insulation performance at high temperature

Abstract

Although pure silicon oxycarbide (SiOC) aerogels have unique properties of low density and high temperature resistance, they are still difficult to apply at a large scale due to brittleness. To overcome this drawback, a strong boron nitride/silicon oxycarbide (BN/SiOC) aerogel composite with high-temperature resistance and thermal insulation was prepared by the sol-gel method and pyrolysis of the precursor aerogel. The microstructural, mechanical and thermal insulation properties of the composites were investigated, and the effect of the BN content on the microstructure and properties was also clarified. The results indicate that the obtained mesoporous composites exhibit low thermal conductivity (0.04–0.20 Wm−1 K−1) and high-temperature resistance (∼1300 °C). As the BN content increased from 0 to 15 vol %, the compressive strength of the composites increased from 2.2 to 20.3 MPa. The obtained composites exhibit considerable promise in high-temperature thermal insulation applications. Keywords: Silicon oxycarbide aerogel, Sol-gel processes, Microstructure, Thermal insulation