One Year of AEROLIGNOCEL: A Milestone in Bio-Based High-Performance Aerogels

Since April 2024, the team at aerogel-it has been working intensively on the next generation of our materials. Within the framework of the “AEROLIGNOCEL” project—funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action—we are now looking back at twelve months of successful development. Our mission: making aerogels more sustainable, more cost-efficient, and even more powerful.

Together with our partners—the Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), Kahnt & Tietze GmbH, and va-Q-tec Thermal Solutions GmbH —we are pursuing a clear vision: transitioning from standard, energy-intensively processed raw materials to bio-based sources and side streams.

Why AEROLIGNOCEL is a Game Changer

Currently, aerogel production often relies on commercial raw materials. However, these do not always optimally meet our specific requirements, which leads to unnecessary costs and a higher environmental footprint. With AEROLIGNOCEL, we are addressing the challenge at its root.

We are investigating alternative raw material sources such as straw and other biomaterials to extract high-quality cellulose. This serves as a foundation for our aerogel formulation platform, allowing us to control material properties from the ground up.

Outstanding Results: Robust, Hydrophobic, and Highly Insulating

After nearly a year of intensive lab work, we can already report groundbreaking successes. By combining the newly extracted cellulose with silica, we have succeeded in developing aerogels with impressive characteristics:

  • Top-Tier Thermal Conductivity: Values below 19 mW/(m*K) set new standards for sustainable insulation materials.

  • Resilience: The materials are mechanically robust and permanently hydrophobic (water-repellent).

  • Safety: We anticipate excellent fire resistance, a critical factor for applications in the construction and industrial sectors.

The most important aspect: These new formulations are fully compatible with our existing multi-purpose production technology. This paves the way for future industrial scaling.

Scaling Up: From the Lab to the Market

A project like AEROLIGNOCEL thrives on collaboration. While we continue to optimize the materials, our partners Kahnt & Tietze and va-Q-tec are already testing the first sample shipments. Starting at the laboratory scale, the next phase will involve testing at the pilot scale.

A central focus here is scalability. To develop commercially relevant solutions, these new aerogel materials must be economically producible in large quantities.

Looking Beyond Aerogels

What is particularly exciting is that the cellulose extraction technology developed in this project holds potential far beyond the world of aerogels. The purity and structure of the extracted materials make them highly interesting for various other industrial sectors.

We are proud of the progress made in this first year and look forward to further pushing the boundaries of material science in the months to come.

Stay tuned for more updates from our R&D department!