PROCESS FOR PRODUCING HYDROPHOBIC AEROGEL.

摘要

A hydrophobic aerogel is produced by reacting a polymer composed of (SiO2)n skeleton and having silanol groups with a hydrophobicity imparting agent having a hydrophobic group and a functional group reactive with the silanol group to form a two-phase gel composed of a hydrophobic polymer and a dispersion medium, and supercritically drying the gel above the critical point of the medium. The obtained aerogel is useful as a material which has a high water resistance, is free from the deterioration of the performances, such as light transmittance or heat insulation, and dimensional changes, such as shrinkage, caused by water adsorption, can exhibit consistent characteristics for long, and is particularly excellent in light transmittance and heat insulation.