A Century of Aerogel Development History and the Evolution of Its Full-Field Applications-technical data-Qingdao Ruida Zhitu Technology Materials Co., Ltd.

Known as "frozen smoke", aerogel is a nanoporous solid material featuring the lowest thermal conductivity and highest porosity known to mankind. First created in the laboratory in 1931, it has undergone four generations of technological iteration over nearly a hundred years. Evolving from a niche special aerospace material, it has been widely adopted across a full spectrum of scenarios including industry, construction, marine & offshore engineering, and new energy.

I. Initial Exploration Stage (1931–1960): Laboratory Birth and Early Industrial Trials

In 1931, American scientist Samuel Kistler successfully developed the world’s first silica aerogel via supercritical drying to verify the conjecture of gel skeletons. The research was published in Nature, officially marking the birth of aerogel. The core experimental principle was to eliminate liquid surface tension under high temperature and high pressure, completely preserving the 3D nano skeleton inside the gel with a porosity of over 99%.

In 1940, Monsanto Company of the United States obtained technical licensing and mass-produced Santocel aerogel powder for rubber filling and daily chemical thickeners, launching the first industrialization attempt. However, constrained by drawbacks such as expensive supercritical drying equipment, high brittleness of the material, and easy cracking of finished products, market demand remained weak. All production lines were shut down in the early 1970s, and aerogel research returned to laboratory-only work.

This stage was limited to basic material research without large-scale engineering applications, only used for a small number of catalysis and laboratory thermal insulation tests.

II. Technology Accumulation Stage (1970–1999): Process Innovation and Aerospace Commercialization

In the 1970s, the methanol supercritical drying process greatly simplified the production workflow. Research institutions worldwide began developing diversified aerogel systems, including alumina-based, carbon-based and metal oxide aerogels. Meanwhile, hydrophobic modification technology solved aerogel’s vulnerability to water and its failure in humid environments.

The 1990s marked a critical turning point for aerogel applications. NASA of the United States leveraged its ultra-light weight and resistance to extreme temperature differences, and applied aerogel to deep space exploration projects. In 1999, the Stardust probe carried silica aerogel to capture high-speed comet dust travelling at 6 km/s. Aerogel thermal insulation layers were also installed in Mars rovers and spacesuit interlayers to withstand extreme space temperatures ranging from -150°C to +150°C, bringing aerogel into the public eye through NASA Spinoff programs.

Nevertheless, major industry pain points persisted during this period: pure aerogel was extremely brittle and could not be bent for construction. It was only applicable to static aerospace equipment free of vibration, making promotion in civil and industrial sectors impossible.

III. Commercial Boom Stage (2000–2015): Launch of Flexible Composite Aerogel and Full-Scale Industrial Adoption

In 2001, US firm Aspen Aerogels launched fiber-reinforced flexible aerogel blankets. By compounding brittle aerogel with glass fiber substrates, the material became cuttable, rollable and installable on-site, completely solving construction challenges and triggering the third wave of aerogel industrialization.

Application scenarios were rolled out in phases:

Oil & Gas Industry: Cryogel low-temperature aerogel insulation blankets were used for subsea pipelines and LNG storage tank thermal insulation. With a thickness only 1/5 of traditional rock wool, they greatly reduced pipeline space occupation and were first mass-deployed on offshore platforms.
Military & Transportation: Infrared shielding for helicopters, thermal insulation for special vehicles, and thermal preservation for cold chain logistics were gradually popularized.
Domestic Technological Breakthrough: After 2008, Chinese enterprises mastered atmospheric drying technology as a low-cost alternative to costly supercritical preparation, cutting production costs to 1/20 of the original level. Domestic aerogel achieved mass production, breaking overseas market monopolies.

During this phase, aerogel transformed from an "aerospace luxury" into a general industrial thermal insulation material, with small-scale pilot deployments on ships, offshore platforms and high-temperature pipelines.

IV. Diversified Global Application Era (2016–Present): Driven by Dual Carbon Goals, Full Industrial Penetration and New Integrated Solutions for Marine Anti-Corrosion & Thermal Insulation

Mature domestic atmospheric drying and low-cost silicon source technologies have enabled a full range of aerogel products, including aerogel powder, aerogel blankets, aerogel thermal insulation coatings, and aerogel composite flexible protective coatings. Boosted by global dual-carbon targets, new maritime green regulations and building energy efficiency policies, aerogel’s application boundaries keep expanding:

New Energy Sector: Fireproof thermal insulation for power batteries, thermal protection for photovoltaic modules, and flame retardancy for energy storage cabins have become core growth markets.
Building Energy Efficiency: National standard GB/T 46993-2025 has been officially implemented. Aerogel insulation boards and thermal coatings are adopted for ultra-low energy buildings and old factory renovations, replacing traditional rock wool and polyurethane with their thin-layer Class A fire resistance advantages.
Marine & Offshore Engineering (Key Growth Segment in 2026): Recent maritime regulations impose strict limits on VOC emissions and vessel energy consumption. Aerogel composite anti-corrosion coatings have emerged as a new integrated protective solution, widely applied for low-temperature insulation of LNG ship fuel tanks, thermal & anti-corrosion protection on splash zones of offshore sightseeing platforms, and thermal insulation for subsea pipelines. Combined with flexible protective coatings, aerogel delivers multi-functional performance including thermal insulation, anti-corrosion, waterproofing and seawater salt spray resistance, drastically cutting vessel operation energy consumption and helping vessels meet CII carbon intensity requirements.
Civil Consumer Market: Cold-proof apparel, outdoor gear and household appliance thermal insulation have gradually entered civilian use.

Domestic research on carbon aerogels and graphene composite aerogels is also underway, integrating adsorption, thermal insulation and electrical conductivity to open up new application fields such as sewage treatment and waste gas governance.

V. Summary of Industrial Development & Evolution

Technology Evolution Route

Pure brittle monolithic aerogel → Hydrophobically modified aerogel → Fiber-reinforced flexible composite aerogel → Low-cost aerogel via atmospheric drying → Multi-functional composite coated aerogel

Application Evolution Logic

Niche aerospace laboratory material → High & low-temperature thermal insulation for oil & gas industry → Mass application in construction and new energy sectors → Integrated multi-functional material for marine & offshore anti-corrosion and thermal insulation

2026 Industry Trends

Driven by surging demand for green marine anti-corrosion, building energy efficiency and new energy fire protection, aerogel is no longer used solely as thermal insulation material. Instead, it is compounded with flexible protective materials to form integrated coatings that combine thermal insulation, anti-corrosion and anti-slip performance. This composite system has become a mainstream new protective solution for marine vessels and offshore platforms, with its market size maintaining rapid and sustained growth.