Insulative coatings are prompting significant interest with increasing environmental and safety awareness and sensitivity to energy efficiency. Aerogels are the best thermal insulators in the world. Cabot’s aerogel has a thermal conductivity of 12mW/m-K (compared to still air or PU foam at 26mW/m-K) and is currently being used extensively in day lighting and oil & gas applications. The performance of aerogel is based on the unique pore structure of the particles that is not impacted by size reduction. The presentation will discuss current technologies used to create different classes of insulative coatings and how Cabot’s silica aerogel products can be used to create the next generation of insulative coatings, providing asset protection, energy efficiency, and human comfort and safety. Basic formulation principles for water borne systems and data from thermal tests on sample coatings will be shared. The data shows the superior nature of the material’s thermal performance at work, reducing surface temperatures by >60°C for 200°C substrates. In addition, the properties of the particles enable superior safety in thin coatings, rendering a 300°C surface safe to touch. Aerogel-based thermally insulative coatings are complementary to IR reflective (low e) coatings and cases that show this synergy at work will be exemplified. Scenarios where an insulative coating can provide meaningful energy savings while alleviating concerns about corrosion under insulation.

Subject
Coating performance, Thin films, Steel surfaces, Water, Coatings, Insulation, Glass, Additives, Substrate surfaces, Heat, Health, safety, and environment, Conductivity, Surface temperature
© 2012 Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP). All rights reserved. This work is protected by both domestic and international copyright laws. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of AMPP. Positions and opinions advanced in this work are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of AMPP. Responsibility for the content of the work lies solely with the author(s).
2012
Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP)
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