Short jute fiber-reinforced silica aerogel with excellent mechanical properties

Aerogels attract a lot of attention due to their high porosity, high specific surface area, low density, and low thermal conductivity. However, high cost, complex manufacturing process, and poor mechanical properties hinder their application in the industrial sector. Herein, we examined the effect of strengthening silica-based aerogels with short jute (Corchorus olitorius) fibers. Gels containing a commercial silica sol, water, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), polyethylene glycol (PEG) and jute fibers were prepared, then freeze-dried for 36 h to yield SiO₂/PVA/PEG-Jute aerogels with different jute fiber contents. The aerogel prepared with a fiber content of 3 wt.% possessed excellent thermal insulation properties (thermal conductivity of 0.05355 W/m K), a linear elongation of 80%, and a compressive strength of 1.1 MPa (8 times higher than the aerogel prepared without jute fibers). The addition of low-cost jute fibers thus maintains the desirable thermal insulation properties of SiO₂-based aerogels whilst significantly improving their mechanical properties (aerogel flexibility, compression performance and shrinkage resistance) for different end uses.