Multifunctional Ultralight Weight Polymer Composite Aerogels of 2D Layered Materials with Tunable Properties

Aerogels are ultralight-weight materials with attractive properties such as a high degree of porosity, a high specific surface area, and low thermal conductivity. Currently, aerogels technology faces several challenges, including the following: scalable manufacturing process, cost-effective production, materials durability, and brittleness that hinder practical applications. Therefore, it is necessary to develop novel approaches and compositions to fabricate high-performance, lightweight, and mechanically robust polymer composite aerogels. Most aerogels are made from ceramic materials, such as silica, alumina, and carbide, and hence they are dense and brittle. Two-dimensional (2D) layered nanostructures such as graphene, graphene oxide (GO), and h-BN are promising materials to produce aerogels. Here, we report the development of highly porous, ultralight-weight, and flexible aerogels made from polymer composites with 2D-layered materials. We will present the physical and chemical characterization of the aerogel composites as well as theoretical calculations that reveal significant interfacial interactions between the polymer and 2D-layered material.