Strength band
native silica aerogel is brittle; fibre-reinforced blankets are the product
Numbers below are bands used by working engineers, not live quotes. Tensile note: native silica aerogel is brittle; fibre-reinforced blankets are the product.
Fire performance in this atlas is editorial. Real projects need the assembly report.
Mechanical
Stiffness
Modulus follows chemistry and orientation — not the marketing nickname.
Toughness
Crack growth, not peak stress, retires most real parts.
Fatigue / creep
Cyclic and time-dependent damage dominate certificates issued on static coupons.
Hardness / hand
Indentation, drape or compressive class — whichever the trade actually measures.
Thermal
Conductivity
silica blankets ~0.015–0.025 W/m·K class — Aerogel is used as insulation.
Service temperature
Melting / softening / decomposition band: silica sinters; organic aerogels burn.
Expansion
Joints and clearances must follow the expansion class of Aerogel, not of steel-by-habit.
Thermal mass
Density ~0.003–0.15 g/cm³ sets how fast a section changes temperature.
Ageing of λ
Foams, VIPs and moist batts drift; quote aged values.
Electrical
Conductor or dielectric
Aerogel is generally a dielectric or semiconductor film, not building wire.
Static / EMI
Fillers and moisture change resistivity more than brochures admit.
Standards language
IACS, volume resistivity or dielectric strength — pick the quantity the job uses.
Fire
Reaction to fire
Typical declared class: silica A1; polymer aerogels not. This is not a universal passport.
Resistance vs reaction
Euroclass is reaction. EI/R ratings are assemblies — boards, coats, cavities.
Melt-drip / char
Aerogel tends to char or stay inorganic rather than melt-drip like commodity olefins.
Smoke / toxicity
CO, HCN, HF or fibres — the species depend on chemistry. Name the test (ISO 5659, EN 45545, NFPA 1971).
If a salesperson quotes a single “safety score”, ask which standard, which thickness, which year.
Keep exploring
More in Advanced solids
🏎️
Carbon fibre
Polymer-derived filaments with graphite-like sheets — aero, bikes and a fire story that is about the resin, not the fibre.
Overall 49 ⬡Graphene
A one-atom carbon sheet — Nobel-era physics, composites hype, and a few honest electronics and barrier uses.
Overall 50 🩺Nitinol
Near-equiatomic Ni–Ti that remembers shape and super-elasticates — stents, orthodontics and actuators.
Overall 48 ☀️Perovskite (PV)
ABX3 halide crystals that jumped laboratory solar efficiency — still fighting humidity, lead and lifetime.
Overall 26