Construction and Properties of Ultralow Thermal Conductivity and High Strength Zirconia Aerogel Composites by Freeze-Drying

Zirconia aerogels possess significant applications, including their use catalyst carriers, thermal insulation materials, and thermal barrier coatings. This is due to their ultrahigh temperature resistance, high porosity, and low thermal conductivity. Nonetheless, the inherent challenges associated with ZrO₂ aerogels, such as high brittleness, low compressive strength, and inadequate formability, restrict their potential applications. In this paper, with ultralow thermal conductivity and high strength zirconia aerogel composites with inorganic zirconium salt zirconium carbonate as the raw material, acetic acid as the solvent, polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) as the viscosity builder to stabilize the structure of the aerogel during the freeze-drying process. Additionally, yttrium nitrate hexahydrate (Y(NO₃)₃·6H₂O) is employed as a phase stabilizer. The sol–gel method, in conjunction with the freeze-drying process, is utilized to fabricate ZrO₂ aerogel composites with an optimized microstructure. The findings indicate that optimal process parameters are achieved with a PVP solution concentration of 2.0 wt % and a zirconium carbonate concentration of 20 wt %. The mechanical properties of the resulting composites reach up to 550 kPa, while the thermal insulation performance exhibits a temperature difference of 207 °C/cm and a thermal conductivity of 0.0504 W/(m·K). This advancement addresses the mechanical stability issues commonly associated with traditional ceramic aerogels and widely used elastic insulating materials, thereby enhancing their applicability as thermal insulation and heat preservation materials.