Abstract
Aerogel-based renderings and plasters have been spreading throughout Europe for nearly a decade. Several national and EU-funded projects have addressed this interesting building product, both at research level within academia and at application level within R&D of renowned industrial enterprises. At present, a number of investigations into the hygro-thermal, chemical and application properties of a commercially successful aerogel-based rendering and its main ingredient, SiO2 aerogel granules, have been undertaken. Immersion in water showed that even under harsh circumstances water does not enter the aerogel granules, but rather accumulates in the porous phase surrounding the granules. A further immersion in calcium hydroxide at different temperatures did not affect the aerogel granule either, which indicates the robustness of the granules with respect to their exposure to moisture and chemical deterioration emerging from the construction materials the rendering is applied on. An executed application to a historic building with a structured finish, and without any reinforcement mesh, showed the advantage of a versatile applicability of this rendering when the external appearance and visible details of a façade must be kept unchanged. The investigation is rounded off by an infrared picture taken on a cold day showing the thermal influence of the aerogel-based rendering, and its effectiveness for reducing heat loss in buildings.
Highlights
IntroductionPublisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations
It has been shown that the hydrophobization of aerogel granules does not suffer when exposed to different aquatic and alkaline environment, even in harsh conditions
The intactness of the hydrophobization means that water and moisture uptake in an aerogel-based rendering occurs only in the porous binder phase surrounding the granules, and not in the granules themselves
Summary
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Aerogels in general represent a fourth state of matter. Molecules and atoms are arranged by covalent junctions in a loose structure with a very high porosity of 90% and higher. This structural arrangement is achieved by drying respective gels and preventing them from collapsing. The SiO2 -aerogel is an aerogel that is used in the building industry. A concise and informative overview regarding the synthesis, properties and applications of SiO2 -aerogels can be found in [1], with a special emphasis on building applications
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