Foreign element doping and thermal stability of alumina aerogels

The addition of foreign elements is considered as an effective method to improve the thermal stability of alumina aerogels at a higher temperature. However, the location and stabilizing mechanism of the foreign elements in the alumina aerogel have not been carefully studied. In this work, Si or La was introduced into the network of alumina aerogels through a sol-gel strategy. The Si-doped alumina aerogel maintained high surface area (92 m²/g) and pore volume (0.572 cm³/g) even at 1300°C. The dopants prevented α-Al₂O₃ transformation at elevated temperatures (1200°C–1300°C). The distribution of foreign ions and their stabilizing mechanism were discussed in detail. The doped alumina aerogels reinforced by mullite fiber felt, with quite low density and thermal conductivity, can be used as high-temperature thermal insulations.