Aerogel is a remarkable material with a long and varied history, having been used to insulate components on Mars rovers, to remove toxic contaminants from water, and even speculatively in nuclear warheads. However, this ultra-light, highly porous material may be ideal for your bay windows now.
Aerogel insulation has been used in buildings for decades, but it remains a relatively unknown and costly option for homeowners seeking to reduce heat loss. With poorly insulated British homes and energy efficiency as a priority, could aerogel soon find its niche?
Two American chemical engineers invented aerogel in the late 1920s or early 1930s. It is an incredibly light, highly porous material consisting of approximately 99% air. It has been utilised as an insulator in The Duncairn arts centre in Belfast, a building on Pimlico Road in London, and the ceiling of a Swiss banker’s residence due to its complex structure and large air volume.
Enviroform is a Northern Ireland-based supplier of Aspen Aerogels’ aerogel insulation in the United States. According to their website, the material is a blanket-like composite of silica aerogel and a reinforcing fibre. A 10mm layer of aerogel insulation attached to the walls of a dwelling could reduce heat loss through the walls by two-thirds; however, it costs approximately £50 per square metre, which is roughly five times the cost of 30mm rigid board insulation.
Due to its high cost, aerogel insulation may not be suitable for everyday use, but it can be useful for insulating components of a building that are especially susceptible to heat loss, such as steel beams, aluminium door or window frames, and window units. In addition, because of its slim profile, it can be used to insulate floors where digging or disturbing the existing floor would be too disruptive.
Berthold Kaufmann, a senior scientist at the Passive House Institute, notes that although the cost of aerogel insulation is a major barrier to its wider use, there are still applications, such as heritage buildings, where other forms of insulation would drastically alter the property’s appearance. With the growing demand for retrofitting buildings with aerogel insulation, production could increase and prices could decrease.
Aerogel insulation is still a small portion of the insulation market, but there is much to be gained by employing it in the appropriate locations. As the managing director of Enviroform, Liam Brown, puts it, “Would you buy a bucket with a hole in it?” The elimination of thermal bridges can prevent up to 30 percent of heat loss in a home, and aerogel is an excellent solution for this problem.
Aerogel has been utilised for a variety of purposes for decades, but it is now poised for success as an insulating material for buildings seeking to reduce heat loss. Despite the fact that its expense remains a deterrent, there are applications in which its slim profile and excellent insulating properties make it both justifiable and desirable.
