Biomimetic, knittable aerogel fiber for thermal insulation textile

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Wu, Mingrui; Shao, Ziyu; Zhao, Nifang; Zhang, Rongzhen; Yuan, Guodong; Tian, Lulu; Zhang, Zibei; Gao, Weiwei; Bai, Hao
• 署名单位: Zhejiang University; Zhejiang University
• 刊物名称: SCIENCE
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0036-8792
• DOI: 10.1126/science.adj8013
• 发表日期: 2023-12-22
• 页码: 1379-1383
• 关键词: lightweight

摘要

Aerogels have been considered as an ideal material for thermal insulation. Unfortunately, their application in textiles is greatly limited by their fragility and poor processability. We overcame these issues by encapsulating the aerogel fiber with a stretchable layer, mimicking the core-shell structure of polar bear hair. Despite its high internal porosity over 90%, our fiber is stretchable up to 1000% strain, which is greatly improved compared with that of traditional aerogel fibers (similar to 2% strain). In addition to its washability and dyeability, our fiber is mechanically robust, retaining its stable thermal insulation property after 10,000 stretching cycles (100% strain). A sweater knitted with our fiber was only one-fifth as thick as down, with similar performance. Our strategy for this fiber provides rich possibilities for developing multifunctional aerogel fibers and textiles.