PRODUCTION OF HYDROPHOBIC AEROGEL

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for providing a hydrophobic aerogel by which a process time can be shortened to improve the efficiency of productivity, and the amount of a used solvent can be minimized to reduce the production cost. SOLUTION: An alkoxysilane compound is simultaneously hydrolyzed and polycondensed to prepare a gel compound, and the gel compound is subjected to a hydrophobizing treatment. The treated gel compound is supercritically dried to provide the objective hydrophobic aerogel. In this case, the gel compound is prepared in the presence of an alcohol, and the gel compound without washing the gel compound with a solvent and in a state of the gel compound including water is subjected to the hydrophobizing treatment in a hydrophobization-treating solution containing an organic silane compound having an alkyl group and an alkoxy group. The solvent included in the gel compound subjected to the hydrophobizing treatment is substituted with carbon dioxide, and the substituted gel compound is supercritically dried.