PROCESS FOR PRODUCING SILICA AEROGEL

摘要

Silica aerogels that are controlled in pore diameter and pore diameter distribution can be produced as follows: a surfactant is dissolved in an acidic aqueous solution; a silicon compound having a hydrolysable functional group and a hydrophobic functional group is added thereto, so that a hydrolysis reaction is carried out to yield a gel; and after the gel is solidified, the gel is dried supercritically Preferably, the surfactant is one selected from the group consisting of a nonionic surfactant, a cationic surfactant, and an anionic surfactant, or a mixture of at least two of them. The silica aerogels produced as described above are usable for heat insulators for solar-heat collector panels or heat-insulating window materials for housing.