Directly ambient pressure dried robust bridged silsesquioxane and methylsiloxane aerogels: effects of precursors and solvents

Robust low-cost silica based aerogels can be obtained by choosing appropriate silane precursors and chemical conditions. In this paper, we synthesized two kinds of bridged siloxane precursors, bridged silsesquioxane (BSQ) from (3-aminopropyl)-triethoxysilane (APTES) and m-phthalaldehyde (MPA), and bridged methylsiloxane (BMSQ) from (3-aminopropyl)-diethoxymethylsilane (APDEMS) and m-phthalaldehyde (MPA) to prepare robust aerogels. Methanol and ethanol were used individually as solvents in the experiment and all the products were dried directly at ambient pressure without any solvent exchange process. All the products show low densities (about 0.15 g cm(−3)) and large porosities (larger than 80%). The influence of the precursor and solvent was investigated. The BSQ aerogels have larger specific surface areas, smaller pore sizes and more stable mechanical performances. Aerogels prepared using methanol as the solvent gel faster and have larger pore sizes. The solvent has greater impacts on the BSQ aerogels, the BSQ aerogels prepared using ethanol as the solvent can withstand 60% deformation in repeated compression tests, exhibiting good mechanical performance.