SBIR Phase I: Advanced Manufacturing for Aerogels for Low and Zero-Emission Applications

The broader/commercial impact of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will be to develop and optimize an advanced manufacturing process for aerogel insulation materials. Aerogels are a class of lightweight thermal super-insulators that are challenging and costly to manufacture due to a high-heat, high-pressure drying process in the final stages of production. To address this, a new method for drying aerogels using ambient pressure and ambient temperature has been developed. This process enables low-cost, high volume production and reduces aerogel production costs by up to 90%. This process will first be used to develop thermal insulation for batteries in electric vehicles, where aerogels are critical as a lightweight, high-temperature material for maintaining stable temperatures. The market for aerogels in EV batteries is rapidly growing, and has a balance of price sensitivity and demand that makes it suitable as a first market using this new production process. Once this process is scaled and optimized, aerogels may become viable for other critical markets including building insulation, energy storage and aviation. This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project aims to develop a low-cost, scalable manufacturing process for aerogel insulation materials. Aerogels are a class of super-insulating materials known for their light weight and superior insulating properties, but are extremely expensive and scarce due to inefficiencies in the production process. The current manufacturing involves using specialized pressure chambers to dry aerogels under high heat and pressure, resulting in high energy costs and low production volumes. This project proposes a novel aerogel production process that dries the aerogels under ambient pressures and temperatures in a continuous process that resembles window glass manufacturing. This ambient drying process dries aerogels by saturating wet gels in a gas atmosphere, slowly drying the gels without causing stresses that can crack the gel. This reduces costs and energy consumption, and allows for a continuous, linear production process without the use of specialized pressure chambers. By enabling scalable production of high-quality aerogel insulation, this innovation could make aerogels more accessible and affordable, transforming insulation across a variety of modern industries. The project aims to use this manufacturing method to develop thermal separators for electric vehicle battery insulation to enhance safety and performance in extreme temperatures. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.