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Novel fibrous/nano-Al2O3 insulation composites produced using sol-gel impregnation for energy-saving

  • Original Paper: Nano-structured materials (particles, fibers, colloids, composites, etc.)
  • Published:
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Abstract

The sol-gel method is a technique used to create a controlled porous structure by building up colloidal particles during the gelation process. In this study, a sol-gel method was utilized to prepare fibrous/nano-Al2O3 insulation composites using glass fiber, nano-Al2O3, and silica sol as primary materials for performance characterization. The samples exhibited high porosities (78.35–81.30%) and low thermal conductivities (0.084–0.159 W m−1 k−1 at 200–600 °C). The introduction of nano-Al2O3 resulted in a well-distributed aperture hierarchy and promoted multidirectional heat transfer paths. The fibers were arranged in a three-dimensional structure, overlapping each other, while the nano-powders were dispersed in a liquid phase and cross-linked to form a spatial mesh structure. The findings of this research have potential applications in heat preservation and energy-saving.

Graphical Abstract

The samples show high porosities (78.35–81.30%), and low thermal conductivities (0.084–0.159 W m−1 k−1 at 200–600 °C). Furthermore, the fibers overlapped each other to form a three-dimensional structure while the nano-powders were dispersed in the liquid phase and cross-linked to each other to form a spatial mesh structure.

Highlights

  • The fibrous/nano-Al2O3 insulation composites had high porosities (78.35–81.30%) and low thermal conductivities (0.084–0.159 W m−1 k−1 at 200–600 °C).

  • In addition, the inclusion of nano-Al2O3 resulted in a well-structured hierarchical pore distribution, which facilitated multidirectional heat transfer paths and ultimately led to a marked reduction in thermal conductivity of the samples.

  • Moreover, the fibers were overlapped to create a three-dimensional structure, while the nano-powders were dispersed in the liquid phase and cross-linked to generate a spatial mesh structure.

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Acknowledgements

We wish to thank Wuhan University of Science and Technology for providing the tests. This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The State Key Laboratory of Refractories and Metallurgy, Wuhan University of Science and Technology, 430081, Wuhan, PR China

    Yuanbing Li, Jingfei Liu, Bo Yin, Shujing Li, Pan Chen & Zhen Cai

  2. National-provincial Joint Engineering Research Center of High Temperature Materials and Lining Technology, Wuhan University of Science and Technology, 430081, Wuhan, PR China

    Yuanbing Li & Shujing Li

  3. Yixing Morgan Thermal Ceramics Co., Ltd., 214222, Yixing, PR China

    Bo Yin

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  1. Yuanbing Li
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Li, Y., Liu, J., Yin, B. et al. Novel fibrous/nano-Al2O3 insulation composites produced using sol-gel impregnation for energy-saving. J Sol-Gel Sci Technol 107, 598–607 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10971-023-06140-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10971-023-06140-8

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