Carbon aerogel composites prepared by ambient drying and using oxidized polyacrylonitrile fibers as reinforcements

Carbon fiber-reinforced carbon aerogel composites (C/CAs) for thermal insulators were prepared by copyrolysis of resorcinol-formaldehyde (RF) aerogels reinforced by oxidized polyacrylonitrile (PAN) fiber felts. The RF aerogel composites were obtained by impregnating PAN fiber felts with RF sols, then aging, ethanol exchanging, and drying at ambient pressure. Upon carbonization, the PAN fibers shrink with the RF aerogels, thus reducing the difference of shrinkage rates between the fiber reinforcements and the aerogel matrices, and resulting in C/CAs without any obvious cracks. The three point bend strength of the C/CAs is 7.1 ± 1.7 MPa, and the thermal conductivity is 0.328 W m(-1) K(-1) at 300 °C in air. These composites can be used as high-temperature thermal insulators (in inert atmospheres or vacuum) or supports for phase change materials in thermal protection system.     

溶胶配比对碳纤维增强炭气凝胶隔热复合材料力学性能的影响

以异丙醇(I)为溶剂、 六次甲基四胺(H)为催化剂, 配制间苯二酚(R)-糠醛(F)的醇溶胶, 经浸渍纤维预制件、凝胶老化、超临界干燥和炭化制得碳纤维增强炭气凝胶隔热复合材料。研究了溶胶配比对碳纤维增强炭气凝胶隔热复合材料密度、微观结构和力学性能的影响规律。结果表明:随着异丙醇与间苯二酚物质的量之比增大, 碳纤维增强炭气凝胶隔热复合材料的密度逐渐降低, 基体炭气凝胶内及与碳纤维形成的界面内孔径增大, 大孔数量增多, 碳纤维增强炭气凝胶隔热复合材料的强度降低。当异丙醇与间苯二酚物质的量之比由18增加到28时, 压缩强度由2.498 MPa(应变10%)降至0.716 MPa(应变10%), 拉伸强度由2.019 MPa降至1.001 MPa, 弯曲强度由3.984 MPa降至1.818 MPa。随着六次甲基四胺与间苯二酚物质的量之比增大, 碳纤维增强炭气凝胶隔热复合材料的密度先增大后减小, 基体炭气凝胶内及与碳纤维形成的界面内孔径先减小后增大, 大孔数量先减少后增加, 碳纤维增强炭气凝胶隔热复合材料的强度先增大后减小。当六次甲基四胺与间苯二酚物质的量之比为0.008 5时, 碳纤维增强炭气凝胶隔热复合材料的密度最大, 强度最大, 其压缩强度为1.066 MPa(应变10%), 拉伸强度为1.256 MPa, 弯曲强度为3.556 MPa。      

Aramid fibers reinforced silica aerogel composites with low thermal conductivity and improved mechanical performance

Aramid fibers reinforced silica aerogel composites (AF/aerogels) for thermal insulation were prepared successfully under ambient pressure drying. The microstructure showed that the aramid fibers were inlaid in the aerogel matrix, acting as the supporting skeletons, to strengthen the aerogel matrix. FTIR revealed AF/aerogels was physical combination between aramid fibers and aerogel matrix without chemical bonds. The as prepared AF/aerogels possessed extremely low thermal conductivity of 0.0227 ± 0.0007 W m⁻¹ K⁻¹ with the fiber content ranging from 1.5% to 6.6%. Due to the softness, low density and remarkable mechanical strength of aramid fibers and the layered structure of the fiber distribution, the AF/aerogels presented nice elasticity and flexibility. TG–DSC indicated the thermal stability reaching approximately 290 °C, can meet the general usage conditions, which was mainly depended on the pure silica aerogels. From mentioned above, AF/aerogels present huge application prospects in heat preservation field, especially in piping insulation.     

炭纤维针刺预制体增强C/SiC复合材料的制备与性能研究

以炭纤维复合网胎针刺织物为预制体, 采用“化学气相渗透法+先驱体浸渍裂解法”(CVI+PIP)混合工艺, 制备了C/SiC陶瓷复合材料; 研究了针刺预制体的致密化效率以及复合材料的微观结构和力学性能, 并与目前常用的三维编织C/SiC复合材料和预氧丝针刺织物增强C/SiC复合材料进行了对比. 结果表明, 针刺预制体的致密化效率明显高于三维编织预制体, 在相同致密工艺条件下, 炭纤维针刺织物增强复合材料和预氧丝针刺织物增强复合材料的密度分 别达到2.08和2.02g/cm³, 而三维编织预制体增强复合材料的密度仅为1.81g/cm³. 炭纤维针刺复合材料的力学性能高于预氧丝针刺复合材料, 弯曲强度和剪切强度分别达到237和26MPa.     

Investigation of the effect of rice husk derived Si/SiC on the morphology and thermal stability of carbon composite aerogels

Highly porous carbon aerogels were prepared by pyrolyzing the novolac–silica aerogels. The silica phase was extracted from rice husk ash (RHA). The polymer aerogel was synthesized via the novel method of sol–gel polymerization in solvent vapor-saturated atmosphere. This method removes the need for supercritical drying and reduces the shrinkage of aerogels during drying stage and also has much lower process time compared to the conventional sol–gel method. In the next step, polymer composite aerogels become carbon/silica and carbon/silica/silicon carbide composites in pyrolysis (800 °C) and carbothermal reduction (1500 °C) stages, respectively. The characterization of the prepared composite aerogels was performed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analyses, respectively. Thermal and mechanical properties of the samples were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and compressive strength analysis. The resultant composite aerogels show a nanostructure with high porosity (above 82%) and low density (below 0.3 g cm^− 3). Si mapping images showed the good distribution of silica phase throughout the carbon matrix. Also the rate of oxidation for carbon composites decreased by silica incorporation and oxidation temperature increased about 20% by adding RHA silica. Compressive strength of composite samples increased about 25% by increasing RHA silica phase content.     

Preparation of carbon aerogel electrodes for supercapacitor and their electrochemical characteristics

A new process is presented for synthesizing the supercapacitor electrodes of carbon aerogel via pyrolyzing resorcinol-formaldehyde (RF) aerogel, which could be cost-effectively obtained by ambient drying of wet RF-gels instead of conventional supercritical drying. Defect free RF-aerogels instead of conventional supercritical drying. Defect free RF-aerogels with the linear shrinkage of less than 8% could be manufactured by ambient-drying of wet RF-gels. Carbon aerogels with high strength were prepared via pyrolyzing RF-aerogels in N₂ atmosphere. The specific surface area (< 600 m²/g) and the electrical conductivity ( 50 S/cm) of carbon aerogels varied in sensitivity with the pyrolysis condition, while their densities (0.6 g/cm³) and porosities (70%) were found to be almost constant. Post heat-treatment of carbon aerogels around 300^C in air atmosphere was very effective for improving the electrochemical properties of electrodes. The carbon aerogel electrode pyrolyzed at 800C showed the specific capacitances of about 40 F/g in H₂SO₄ electrolyte solution and 35 F/g in KOH solution.     

Strong, low density, hexylene- and phenylene-bridged polysilsesquioxane aerogel–polycyanoacrylate composites

Nanocomposite aerogels were prepared by chemical vapor deposition and polymerization of cyanoacrylate on the surface of bridged polysilsesquioxane aerogels. Phenylene- and hexylene-bridged aerogels were prepared by sol–gel polymerizations and supercritical carbon dioxide drying. Hydrophobic organic bridging groups in the polysilsesquioxane aerogels reduced the amount of adsorbed water available for initiating polymerizations and led to higher molecular weight polycyanoacrylate than was observed with silica aerogels. Densities increased as much as 65% due to the addition of the organic polymer, but the nanocomposite aerogels remained highly porous with surface areas between 440 and 750 m²/g. Polycyanoacrylate–phenylene-bridged aerogel composites were the strongest with flexural strengths up to 780 kPa or 16-fold stronger than the untreated phenylene-bridged aerogels and fivefold stronger than a silica aerogel of the same density. The strongest polycyanoacrylate–hexylene-bridged aerogel composites had flexural strength of 285 kPa or ninefold stronger than the untreated hexylene-bridged aerogels and twice as strong as a silica aerogel of comparable density. The greater strength of the new composites is, in part, due to the greater strength of the bridged aerogels. However, higher molecular weight polycyanoacrylate, due to less surface water on the hydrophobic bridged aerogels, also contributes to the greater nanocomposite strengths.     

Study of transport properties and conduction mechanism of pure and composite resorcinol formaldehyde aerogel doped with Co-ferrite

A series of resorcinol formaldehyde aerogels (RF aerogels) composite with nanoparticles of CoFe₂O₄ have been prepared by sol–gel method. Four samples of pure RF aerogels were prepared at different concentrations of Na₂CO₃ as catalyst (0.02, 0.025, 0.03, and 0.04 wt.%) and four samples of composite RF aerogels were prepared at different concentration of doped CoFe₂O₄ (0.075, 0.1, 0.125, and 0.15 wt.%; Na₂CO₃ concentration = 0.03 wt.%). DC electrical conductivity as a function of temperature was studied in the temperature range 25 °C–200 °C for all samples. AC electrical conductivity and dielectric properties were determined using RLC Bridge in the frequency range 100 Hz–1 MHz at different temperature (25–200 °C). The pore size of the samples was determined using positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS). RF aerogels are found to exhibit a semiconducting behavior and characterized by two transition temperatures T₁ and T₂. Also σ_DC increases with increase of Co-ferrite contents. Pure RF aerogels posses a very low dielectric constant, where the lowest value of ?′ is ∼4 times as that of air. ?′ decreases with increase of frequency, and increases with increase of temperature. Large overlapping polaron (OLP) is found to be the preferred conduction mechanism in these materials. The results of PALS show that there are two types of pore size in these samples; the first ranges from 1.9 to 2.5 nm, while the second ranges from 3.2 to 5.3 nm.     

Mechanical and degradation characteristics of natural silk fiber reinforced gelatin composites

Silk reinforced gelatin based composites were prepared by compression molding. The fiber content in the composite was 20 wt.%. Tensile strength (TS), tensile modulus (TM), bending strength (BS), bending modulus (BM), impact strength (IS) and hardness of the composites were found 44.5 MPa, 0.65 GPa, 63 MPa, 3.7 GPa, 5.1 kJ/m² and 96 shore A respectively. The environmental effect on composite was observed by simulating weathering test and the composite lost 15.2% TS at the end of 30 h of the weathering testing period. The biodegradation test shows that the composite degrades very quickly and losses 52.1% weight at the end of 24 h. Morphological analysis was carried out to observe fracture behaviour and fiber pullout of the samples.     

Reinforcing potential of micro- and nano-sized fibers in the starch-based biocomposites

Starch-based biocomposites reinforced with jute (micro-sized fiber) and bacterial cellulose (BC) (nano-sized fiber) were prepared by film casting. Reinforcement in the composites is essentially influenced by fiber nature, and amount of loading. The optimum amount of fiber loading for jute and bacterial cellulose in each composite system are 60 wt% and 50 wt% (of starch weight), respectively. Mechanical properties are largely improved due to the strong hydrogen interaction between the starch matrix and cellulose fiber together with good fiber dispersion and impregnation in these composites revealed by SEM. The composites reinforced with 40 wt% or higher bacterial cellulose contents have markedly superior mechanical properties than those reinforced with jute. Young’s modulus and tensile strength of the optimum 50 wt% bacterial cellulose reinforced composite averaged 2.6 GPa and 58 MPa, respectively. These values are 106-fold and 20-fold more than the pure starch/glycerol film. DMTA revealed that the presence of bacterial cellulose (with optimum loading) significantly enhanced the storage modulus and glass transition temperature of the composite, with a 35 °C increment. Thermal degradation of the bacterial cellulose component occurred at higher temperatures implying improved thermal stability. The composites reinforced with bacterial cellulose also had much better water resistance than those associated with jute. In addition, even at high fiber loading, the composites reinforced by bacterial cellulose clearly retain an exceptional level of optical transparency owing to the effect of the nano-sized fibers and also good interfacial bonding between the matrix and bacterial cellulose.     

石墨烯/炭气凝胶的制备及其结构与性能研究

以间苯二酚(R)和甲醛(F)为炭前驱体原料, 通过溶胶-凝胶法制备石墨烯/炭气凝胶复合材料。采用XRD、Raman、SEM和N₂吸附/脱附等对样品进行结构表征。结果表明: 石墨烯为R和F的聚合提供形核场所, R和F首先在氧化石墨烯(GO)表面聚合, 随着RF含量的增加, 复合炭气凝胶(RF)结构从石墨烯薄片层为骨架的三维网络, 经RF基炭球包裹于石墨烯的网络结构, 最终转变为球形团簇交联的三维网络。石墨烯/炭气凝胶复合材料的比表面积随着RF的增加先增大后减小。当GO与RF质量比为1︰100时, GO/RF-100用作超级电容器电极材料, 在6 mol/L KOH电解液中的比电容达169 F/g, 具有较好的电容特性。     

Mechanical properties investigation of carbon/carbon composites fabricated by a fast densification process

Carbon/carbon (C/C) composites were prepared by thermal gradient chemical vapor infiltration with a fast densification rate. The fracture morphology and mechanical properties were examined by scanning electron microscopy and mechanical testing, respectively. The effects of preform type and heat treatment temperature (HTT) on the mechanical properties of C/C composites were analyzed. The results show that the average flexural strength drops from 47.8 MPa to 38.6 MPa as the HTT increases from 2100 °C to 2500 °C. C/C composites with felt as preform show brittle fracture and samples with needle-punched felt as reinforcement present obvious pseudoplastic property. The interlaminar shear strength of needle-punched felt reinforced composites is higher than that of sample with felt as preform by 44.26% owing to the needle-punched fiber in the thickness direction. The strength of interfacial bonding plays a key role to mechanical properties and failure behavior of C/C composites.     

预测纤维增强气凝胶复合材料热导率的研究进展

SiO2气凝胶复合材料具有纳米尺度结构和极低热导率,作为隔热保温材料在航天航空、建筑和其他工业领域具有重要的科学和应用价值。根据纤维在气凝胶基体中的不同分布方式,概述了预测 SiO2气凝胶复合材料的气固耦合热导率的研究进展;基于纤维和气凝胶的消光系数的不同计算方法,概述了预测 SiO2气凝胶复合材料的辐射热导率的研究进展。并提出了纤维增强气凝胶复合材料体系存在的跨尺度、多物相、分级及相互耦合等仍需进一步解决的难题,结合最新发展的格子 Boltzmann 方法(LBM),指出了预测 SiO2气凝胶复合材料等效热导率的可能发展方向。     

Electromagnetic characteristic and microwave absorbing performance of different carbon-based hydrogenated acrylonitrile–butadiene rubber composites

Hydrogenated acrylonitrile–butadiene rubber (HNBR) was mixed with carbon fiber (CF), conductive carbon black (CCB) and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) to prepare microwave absorbing composites, their complex permittivity was measured in microwave frequencies (2–18 GHz), and their electromagnetic characteristics and microwave absorbing performance were studied. The real part and imaginary part of permittivity of the composites increased with increasing carbon filler loading, showing dependency on filler type. The microwave reflection loss of the composites also depended on the loading and type of fillers. The matching thickness of the absorber layer decreased with increasing permittivity, while the matching frequency decreased with increasing layer thickness. The minimum reflection loss was −49.3 dB for HNBR/MWCNT (100/10) composite, while −13.1 dB for HNBR/CCB (100/15) composite and −7.1 dB for HNBR/CF (100/30) composite. The efficient microwave absorption of HNBR/MWCNT composites is accounted from high conduction loss and dielectric relaxation of MWCNT, and strong interface scattering.     

陶瓷纤维增强SiO2气凝胶复合材料面内拉伸非均匀全场应变测量与分析

通过设计圆弧边缘夹持方案和狗骨形拉伸试样,开展了陶瓷纤维增强SiO₂气凝胶复合材料室温环境中的面内拉伸性能试验,采用数字图像相关方法对陶瓷纤维增强SiO₂气凝胶复合材料表面的全场变形进行测量和分析,并结合获得的非均匀应变分布情况进一步讨论其力学行为特征和变形断裂机制。结果表明:纤维增强增韧机制使陶瓷纤维增强SiO₂气凝胶复合材料的面内拉伸行为表现出一定的非线性及韧性特征;在一定载荷水平下,陶瓷纤维增强SiO₂气凝胶复合材料表面应变分布呈显著的非均匀特征,与内部随机的纤维排布及各处传力情况不同相关,可选择较大计算区域进行平均化处理来减弱对测试中应变度量的影响;在加载和断裂过程中陶瓷纤维增强SiO₂气凝胶复合材料表面存在局部应变集中现象,并随着裂纹扩展而发生演变,面内拉伸载荷下的宏观断口呈锯齿状特征,主要由剪应力主导的基体断裂、法向针刺对纤维铺层的约束等原因所致。本文研究结果为隔热复合材料的强韧化性能提高指明了方向。      

Synthesis of platinum nanoparticles on carbon aerogel by ambient pressure drying method

Platinum nanoparticles were successfully synthesized on porous carbon aerogel with narrow pore size distribution by ambient pressure drying method. Platinum doped carbon aerogels were synthesized by sol-gel polymerization of resorcinol with furfural in non aqueous medium followed by ambient pressure drying and pyrolysis of organic gel. These samples were characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), X-ray Diffraction (XRD) and Flow Chemisorption. TEM and XRD results showed that size of platinum nanoparticle varies between 2 and 5 nm depending on platinum loading and pyrolysis temperature. Hydrogen pulsed chemisorption showed 26.5% dispersion of platinum nanoparticles in carbon aerogel.     

Solar photocatalytic degradation of 2-sec-butyl-4,6-dinitrophenol (DNBP) using TiO2/SiO2 aerogel composite photocatalysts

Silica aerogels and TiO₂/silica aerogel composite photocatalysts were synthesized by sol–gel technique at ambient pressure using orthosilioate and tetra-n-butyl titanate as precursors, respectively. The prepared composite photocatalysts were characterized by XRD, TEM, BET surface area, FT-IR and UV–vis absorption spectra. The results showed that the TiO₂/silica aerogel composite photocatalysts possess high surface area. The addition of silica aerogels inhibited the grain growth and phase transformation of anatase to rutile during calcination. The TiO₂/silica aerogel composite sample calcined at 500 °C with an optimal silica aerogel content of 7 wt.% afforded the highest photocatalytic activity. The photocatalytic degradation of 2-sec-butyl-4,6-dinitrophenol (DNBP) was investigated by using this novel TiO₂/silica aerogel composite photocatalyst under solar light irradiation. The effects of irradiation time, pH, catalyst concentration, temperature and initial DNBP concentration were examined as operational parameters. The optimal operational parameters were found as follows: pH as solution pH 4.82, 8 g L⁻¹ catalyst concentration, 20 °C, and 240 min irradiation time. The kinetics of DNBP degradation by TiO₂/silica aerogel composite fit well a pseudo-first-order kinetic model. The repeatability of photocatalytic activity was also tested. This study showed the feasible and potential use of TiO₂/silica aerogel composite photocatalysts in degradation of toxic organic contaminants.     

耐高温氧化铝气凝胶隔热复合材料研究进展

氧化铝气凝胶是一种高孔隙率、低密度、高比表面积、耐高温和低热导的纳米多孔材料,在高温隔热领域(如航天飞行器热防护系统、工业窑炉保温材料等)具有广阔的应用前景.但是,纯氧化铝气凝胶因耐温性(1000℃以上)、力学性能和高温隔热性能相对较差难以直接应用,需要引入增强相和遮光组分制备成气凝胶复合材料以进行改善.本文对耐高温氧...     

Tensile properties and damage behaviors of Csf/Mg composite at elevated temperature and containing a small fraction of liquid

The mechanical properties of magnesium matrix composites reinforced by pyrolytic carbon coated short carbon fiber at temperatures close to and above the solidus temperature were investigated by tensile tests for the first time. Microstructural observations and fractographic analysis were carried out in order to reveal the damage mechanisms of the composites with different fraction of liquid. Tensile strength of the composites decreased monotonously with temperature, an exponential equation relating the tensile strength to temperature and liquid fraction was derived. The elongation increases monotonously with temperatures from 400 °C to 428 °C (solidus temperature), and then decreases gradually with increasing fraction of liquid except a trough at 432 °C. The composites almost have no ductility and cannot sustain tensile stress when the fraction of liquid reaches 8%. The amount and distribution of liquid phase in the composites directly determines their mechanical properties and damage behavior.     

Effect of microfibrillated cellulose on mechanical properties of plain-woven CFRP reinforced epoxy

This investigation concerns about study the effect of natural fiber on high performance composite. Effect of addition microfibrillated cellulose (MFC) as natural fiber to plain woven carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CF) reinforced epoxy on mechanical and thermal properties has been investigated. CF/epoxy composites with addition 0.5, 1 and 2 wt.% of MFC were characterized by different techniques, namely tensile, DMA, fracture toughness (mode I) test and SEM. The results reveal that at 2 wt.% of MFC, initiation and propagation interlaminar fracture toughness in mode I improved significantly by 80% and 44% respectively. Although there is slight tendency to increase tensile strength and Young’s modulus with addition MFC up to 2%, it is still not significant with those low contents of MFC. With addition 2 wt.% MFC, the glass transition temperature increased by about 12 °C compared to neat CF/epoxy composite indicating better heat resistance with addition of MFC.