Aerogel composite fiber material and preparation method thereof

Abstract

The invention provides an aerogel composite fiber material and a preparation method thereof, the aerogel composite fiber material comprises a fiber base material and aerogel particles, the fiber base material is formed by carrying out melt blending on a polyester base material and master batch containing the aerogel particles and then carrying out wire drawing, and the aerogel particles are uniformly dispersed in the fiber base material in a nanoscale size to form a porous network structure. According to the aerogel composite fiber material prepared in the invention, the aerogel particles are uniformly dispersed in the fiber base material, so that the thermal insulation performance of the material is remarkably improved, and meanwhile, the lightweight characteristic and good mechanical properties of the material are maintained.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of composite fiber structures, and in particular to an aerogel composite fiber material and a preparation method thereof. Background Art

[0002] With the development of modern technology and industry, the demand for high-performance thermal insulation materials is growing. Traditional insulation materials, such as fiberglass and rock wool, although they have certain insulation effects, have problems such as high density, high thermal conductivity, and poor environmental performance.

[0003] Traditional composite fiber materials are compounded by spraying and other methods, and have poor thermal insulation properties. For example, filling flake products need to increase thickness to obtain better thermal insulation performance. The increase in thickness makes the thermal insulation flakes larger and heavier, and the flakes of the quilt are prone to loosening, resulting in uneven thickness of the flakes, which also affects the thermal insulation effect of the quilt.

[0004] As a new type of nanoporous material, aerogel has extremely low thermal conductivity and excellent lightweight properties, making it an ideal thermal insulation material. However, its uniform dispersion in fiber materials and its bonding strength with the fiber substrate have always been technical difficulties.

[0005] There is a need for a new type of aerogel composite fiber material and a preparation method thereof that can solve the above-mentioned problems. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The present invention provides an aerogel composite fiber material and a preparation method thereof. By technically transforming the existing fiber material and using an innovative melt composite process to achieve nano-scale dispersed bonding of aerogel and fiber matrix, the problem of heavy weight and poor thermal insulation of sheets prepared from existing fiber materials is solved.

[0007] To achieve the above object, the technical solution adopted by the present invention is:

[0008] An aerogel composite fiber material comprises a fiber substrate and aerogel particles, wherein the fiber substrate is formed by melt-blending a polyester substrate and a masterbatch containing aerogel particles and then drawing the mixture; the aerogel particles are uniformly dispersed in the fiber substrate in nanometer size to form a porous network structure.

[0009] Preferably, an interface region is provided between the aerogel particles and the fiber substrate, and a bonding aid and an interface modifier are provided in the interface region.

[0010] Preferably, the aerogel particles are mainly made of silicon dioxide or other natural minerals suitable for conversion into aerogels through processes such as high-temperature carbonization and grinding.

[0011] Preferably, the fiber base material is polyester staple fibers, and the polyester staple fibers have a continuous, interwoven network structure.

[0012] A method for preparing the above-mentioned aerogel composite fiber material comprises the following steps:

[0013] S1. Raw material selection: Choose high-quality natural ores rich in silica or other materials that can be converted into aerogels. Ensure that the ores are pure and free of impurities to ensure the stability of subsequent processes and product performance.

[0014] S2. Composition analysis: Detailed chemical composition analysis of the selected natural ore, especially the silica content and other elements that may affect the performance of the aerogel. At the same time, according to the product performance requirements, consider whether to add specific metal oxides to adjust the thermal, mechanical or electrical properties of the material;

[0015] S3, high-temperature carbonization, carbonizing the screened natural ore in a high-temperature furnace at a temperature of 3000°C to remove organic matter and non-carbon components in the ore and form a porous carbon structure;

[0016] S4, grinding, grinding the carbonized ore and the metal oxides added as needed into nano-scale powders through high-energy ball mills or air flow mills to ensure uniform powder particle size, which is beneficial for subsequent aerogel preparation and fiber composites;

[0017] S5. Mix and prepare masterbatch: evenly mix the nano-scale powder with appropriate amounts of binders, dispersants, interface modifiers and other additives, and make masterbatch through an extruder granulator to prepare for subsequent melt drawing;

[0018] S6. The masterbatch and the polyester substrate are melt-drawn to form polyester staple fibers. The masterbatch and the polyester chips are mixed in a certain proportion and fed into a twin-screw extruder for melt blending. The melted mixture is drawn through a spinning assembly to form polyester staple fibers.

[0019] S7. Test fiber properties. Conduct performance tests on the prepared polyester staple fibers, including but not limited to density, thermal conductivity, tensile strength, and elongation at break, to ensure that the products meet the predetermined functional textile standards.

[0020] S8, semi-finished product production, the qualified polyester staple fiber is further processed into semi-finished products such as flakes, fillings and yarns. According to specific application requirements, semi-finished products of different shapes and densities can be made through processes such as carding, needling, hot air bonding, etc.

[0021] S9, finished product production, further processing semi-finished products into final products such as clothing, home textiles, furniture mattresses and filter elements and filter materials.

[0022] Preferably, in step S5, the mass ratio of the fiber substrate, the aerogel particles, the binder and the interface modifier is 80-90:5-15:1-5:0.1-1.

[0023] Preferably, in step S6, the temperature of the melt drawing is controlled at 230-280°C, and the drawing speed is 100-500 m / min.

[0024] Preferably, step S6 further includes post-processing the aerogel composite fiber, including heat treatment, stretching and shaping.

[0025] Preferably, in step S6, the heat treatment temperature is 120-180° C., and the time is 10-60 minutes.

[0026] The beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0027] This application breaks through the traditional powder particle implantation mixing method of the spraying process and realizes the nano-scale dispersion combination of aerogel and fiber matrix through an innovative melt composite process. The resulting material has a three-dimensional porous network structure and a density as low as 0.01-0.03g / cm 3 , thermal conductivity <0.02W / (m·K), which is particularly suitable for the preparation of functional textiles such as ultra-lightweight thermal insulation sheets and high-efficiency thermal insulation composite materials.

[0028] The composite material prepared in this application adopts the nanoporous structure of aerogel, which makes the density of the composite material extremely low and achieves ultra-lightweight;

[0029] The aerogel in this application has extremely low thermal conductivity, which can effectively isolate the outside hot and cold air and provide excellent warmth retention effect;

[0030] The aerogel composite fiber material of the present application not only has excellent thermal insulation performance, but also can effectively prevent heat transfer and improve energy utilization efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0031] Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the steps of the preparation method of the present invention; DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0032] The specific contents of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0033] See also Figure 1 As shown, the present invention provides an aerogel composite fiber material, including a fiber substrate and aerogel particles, wherein the fiber substrate is formed by melt-blending a polyester substrate and a masterbatch containing aerogel particles and then drawing the resultant, and the aerogel particles are uniformly dispersed in the fiber substrate in nanometer size to form a porous network structure.

[0034] Furthermore, an interface region is provided between the aerogel particles and the fiber substrate, wherein a bonding agent and an interface modifier are provided in the interface region. The bonding agent is used to enhance the bonding strength between the aerogel particles and the fiber substrate and is selected from polyvinyl alcohol, epoxy resin, polyurethane, etc. The interface modifier is used to improve the interfacial compatibility between the aerogel particles and the fiber substrate and is selected from silane coupling agents, titanate coupling agents, etc.

[0035] Furthermore, the aerogel particles are primarily made from silicon dioxide or other natural minerals suitable for conversion into aerogels through high-temperature carbonization and grinding. Aerogel particles are made from natural minerals (such as diatomaceous earth and perlite) through high-temperature carbonization and grinding to the nanoscale, and have extremely low thermal conductivity and excellent lightweight properties.

[0036] Furthermore, the fiber base material is polyester staple fibers, which have a continuous, interwoven network structure, providing mechanical support and stability for the material.

[0037] Aerogel particles are uniformly embedded in a fiber matrix at the nanometer scale. These particles possess extremely high porosity and low density, forming a porous structure similar to a sponge. These pores not only provide the material with excellent thermal insulation properties but also help absorb and store gases, further enhancing the material's thermal insulation effect.

[0038] The method for preparing the above-mentioned aerogel composite fiber material comprises the following steps:

[0039] S1. Raw material selection: Choose high-quality natural ores rich in silica or other materials that can be converted into aerogels. Ensure that the ores are pure and free of impurities to ensure the stability of subsequent processes and product performance.

[0040] S2. Composition analysis: Detailed chemical composition analysis of the selected natural ore, especially the silica content and other elements that may affect the performance of the aerogel. At the same time, according to the product performance requirements, consider whether to add specific metal oxides to adjust the thermal, mechanical or electrical properties of the material;

[0041] S3, high-temperature carbonization, carbonizing the screened natural ore in a high-temperature furnace at a temperature of 3000°C to remove organic matter and non-carbon components in the ore and form a porous carbon structure;

[0042] S4, grinding, grinding the carbonized ore and the metal oxides added as needed into nano-scale powders through high-energy ball mills or air flow mills to ensure uniform powder particle size, which is beneficial for subsequent aerogel preparation and fiber composites;

[0043] S5. Mix and prepare masterbatch: evenly mix the nano-scale powder with appropriate amounts of binders, dispersants, interface modifiers and other additives, and make masterbatch through an extruder granulator to prepare for subsequent melt drawing;

[0044] S6. The masterbatch and the polyester substrate are melt-drawn to form polyester staple fibers. The masterbatch and the polyester chips are mixed in a certain proportion and fed into a twin-screw extruder for melt blending. The melted mixture is drawn through a spinning assembly to form polyester staple fibers.

[0045] S7. Test fiber properties. Conduct performance tests on the prepared polyester staple fibers, including but not limited to density, thermal conductivity, tensile strength, and elongation at break, to ensure that the products meet the predetermined functional textile standards.

[0046] S8, semi-finished product production, the qualified polyester staple fiber is further processed into semi-finished products such as flakes, fillings and yarns. According to specific application requirements, semi-finished products of different shapes and densities can be made through processes such as carding, needling, hot air bonding, etc.

[0047] S9, finished product production, further processing semi-finished products into final products such as clothing, home textiles, furniture mattresses and filter elements and filter materials.

[0048] Furthermore, in step S5, the mass ratio of the fiber substrate, the aerogel particles, the binder and the interface modifier is 80-90:5-15:1-5:0.1-1.

[0049] Furthermore, in step S6, the temperature of the melt drawing is controlled at 230-280°C, and the drawing speed is 100-500 m / min.

[0050] Furthermore, in step S6, the aerogel composite fiber is further subjected to post-processing, including heat treatment, stretching and shaping.

[0051] Furthermore, in step S6, the heat treatment temperature is 120-180° C., and the time is 10-60 minutes.

[0052] In a specific embodiment 1:

[0053] In step S1, raw material selection: high-purity diatomaceous earth is selected as the raw material because it contains rich silicon dioxide (SiO2) and is an ideal material for preparing aerogel.

[0054] In step S3, high-temperature carbonization, the diatomaceous earth is placed in a high-temperature carbonization furnace and carbonized at 3000°C for 4 hours under nitrogen protection. This process is intended to remove organic matter from the diatomaceous earth, leaving behind a porous silicon carbide structure.

[0055] In step S4, grinding and refining: the carbonized diatomaceous earth is ground in a high-energy ball mill until the particles reach the nanometer scale, with an average particle size of about 20 nanometers. The resulting aerogel precursor particles have an extremely high specific surface area and a porous structure.

[0056] In step S5, the following steps are included:

[0057] S501, selecting polyester chips as the main fiber substrate, mixing them with aerogel particles, polyvinyl alcohol as a binder, and a silane coupling agent as an interfacial modifier in the following mass ratio: 85% polyester chips, 10% aerogel particles, 3% polyvinyl alcohol, and 2% silane coupling agent;

[0058] S502, melt blending: After the above raw materials are evenly mixed, they are put into a twin-screw extruder and melt blended at a temperature of 260°C to ensure that the aerogel particles are evenly dispersed in the polyester matrix. The extruder screw speed is controlled at 300 rpm to ensure mixing uniformity;

[0059] S503, granulation: the melt-blended material is cut into uniform masterbatch by a pelletizer for subsequent melt drawing.

[0060] In step S6, the following steps are included:

[0061] S601, Melt Drawing: The prepared masterbatch is placed into a melt drawing machine and melt-drawn at 250°C at a speed of 300 m / min. During the drawing process, the aerogel particles are evenly distributed within the polyester fiber, forming a continuous porous network structure.

[0062] S602, heat treatment: heat-treating the drawn aerogel composite polyester fiber in an oven at 150° C. for 30 minutes to improve the crystallinity and mechanical properties of the fiber.

[0063] S603, stretching and shaping: The heat-treated fiber is stretched by a stretching machine with a stretching ratio of 1.5 times, and then shaped on a shaping machine with the temperature controlled at 100°C for 10 minutes to ensure the dimensional stability and morphological stability of the fiber.

[0064] The aerogel-composite polyester fiber material prepared through the above steps exhibits excellent thermal insulation properties, with a thermal conductivity approximately 30% lower than that of traditional polyester fibers, while maintaining excellent mechanical properties and lightweight characteristics. The aerogel particles are evenly dispersed within the fibers, forming a continuous porous network structure, effectively enhancing the material's thermal insulation performance. Furthermore, this preparation method is simple and efficient, easily scalable, and uses environmentally friendly raw materials, meeting the requirements of sustainable development.

[0065] This application breaks through the traditional powder particle implantation mixing method of the spraying process and realizes the nano-scale dispersion combination of aerogel and fiber matrix through an innovative melt composite process. The resulting material has a three-dimensional porous network structure and a density as low as 0.01-0.03g / cm 3 , thermal conductivity <0.02W / (m·K), which is particularly suitable for the preparation of functional textiles such as ultra-lightweight thermal insulation sheets and high-efficiency thermal insulation composite materials.

[0066] The composite material prepared in this application adopts the nanoporous structure of aerogel, which makes the density of the composite material extremely low and achieves ultra-lightweight;

[0067] The aerogel in this application has extremely low thermal conductivity, which can effectively isolate the outside hot and cold air and provide excellent warmth retention effect;

[0068] The aerogel composite fiber material of the present application not only has excellent thermal insulation performance, but also can effectively prevent heat transfer and improve energy utilization efficiency.

[0069] The aerogel composite fiber material of this application has broad application prospects in multiple fields: Textiles: As quilt filling, it provides a light, warm, and heat-insulating sleeping experience. Aerospace: It is used as a thermal insulation layer for aircraft, satellites and other equipment to improve the reliability and safety of the equipment. Building energy conservation: It is used for exterior wall insulation, roof insulation, etc. to improve the energy efficiency of buildings. New energy vehicles: As a thermal insulation material in battery packs, it effectively prevents thermal runaway of the battery.

[0070] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention and are not limiting. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that the technical solutions of the present invention may be modified or replaced by equivalents without departing from the purpose and scope of the technical solutions of the present invention, which should all be included in the scope of the claims of the present invention.

[0071] The standard parts used in the present invention can all be purchased from the market, and special-shaped parts can be customized according to the description in the specification and the drawings. The specific connection methods of each part adopt conventional means such as mature bolts, rivets, welding, etc. in the existing technology. The machinery, parts and equipment all adopt conventional models in the existing technology, and the circuit connection adopts the conventional connection method in the existing technology, which will not be described in detail here.

[0072] In the description of the present invention, unless otherwise expressly specified or limited, the terms "mounted," "connected," "connected," and "fixed" should be understood in a broad sense. For example, they may refer to fixed or detachable connections, or integration; mechanical or electrical connections; direct or through an intermediate medium; and internal communication between two components or interaction between two components. Those skilled in the art will understand the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention based on the specific circumstances.

Claims

1. An aerogel composite fiber material, characterized in that: The invention comprises a fiber substrate and aerogel particles, wherein the fiber substrate is formed by melt-blending a polyester substrate and a masterbatch containing aerogel particles and then drawing the mixture; the aerogel particles are uniformly dispersed in the fiber substrate in nanometer size to form a porous network structure.

2. The aerogel composite fiber material according to claim 1, characterized in that: An interface region is also provided between the aerogel particles and the fiber substrate, and a bonding aid and an interface modifier are provided in the interface region.

3. The aerogel composite fiber material according to claim 1, characterized in that: The aerogel particles are mainly made of silicon dioxide or other natural minerals suitable for conversion into aerogels through processes such as high-temperature carbonization and grinding.

4. The aerogel composite fiber material according to claim 1, characterized in that: The fiber base material is polyester staple fibers, and the polyester staple fibers have a continuous and mutually interwoven network structure.

5. A method for preparing the aerogel composite fiber material according to any one of claims 1 to 4, comprising the following steps: S1. Raw material selection: Choose high-quality natural ores rich in silica or other materials that can be converted into aerogels. Ensure that the ores are pure and free of impurities to ensure the stability of subsequent processes and product performance. S2. Composition analysis: Detailed chemical composition analysis of the selected natural ore, especially the silica content and other elements that may affect the performance of the aerogel. At the same time, according to the product performance requirements, consider whether to add specific metal oxides to adjust the thermal, mechanical or electrical properties of the material; S3, high-temperature carbonization, carbonizing the screened natural ore in a high-temperature furnace at a temperature of 3000°C to remove organic matter and non-carbon components in the ore and form a porous carbon structure; S4, grinding, grinding the carbonized ore and the metal oxides added as needed into nano-scale powders through high-energy ball mills or air flow mills to ensure uniform powder particle size, which is beneficial for subsequent aerogel preparation and fiber composites; S5. Mix and prepare masterbatch: evenly mix the nano-scale powder with appropriate amounts of binders, dispersants, interface modifiers and other additives, and make masterbatch through an extruder granulator to prepare for subsequent melt drawing; S6. The masterbatch and the polyester substrate are melt-drawn to form polyester staple fibers. The masterbatch and the polyester chips are mixed in a certain proportion and fed into a twin-screw extruder for melt blending. The melted mixture is drawn through a spinning assembly to form polyester staple fibers. S7. Test fiber properties. Conduct performance tests on the prepared polyester staple fibers, including but not limited to density, thermal conductivity, tensile strength, and elongation at break, to ensure that the products meet the predetermined functional textile standards. S8, semi-finished product production, the qualified polyester staple fiber is further processed into semi-finished products such as flakes, fillings and yarns. According to specific application requirements, semi-finished products of different shapes and densities can be made through processes such as carding, needling, hot air bonding, etc. S9, finished product production, further processing semi-finished products into final products such as clothing, home textiles, furniture mattresses and filter elements and filter materials.

6. The method for preparing an aerogel composite fiber material according to claim 5, characterized in that: In step S5, the mass ratio of the fiber substrate, the aerogel particles, the binder, and the interfacial modifier is 80-90:5-15:1-5:0.1-1.

7. The method for preparing an aerogel composite fiber material according to claim 5, characterized in that: In step S6, the temperature of the melt drawing is controlled at 230-280°C, and the drawing speed is 100-500 m / min.

8. The method for preparing an aerogel composite fiber material according to claim 5, characterized in that: In step S6, the aerogel composite fiber is further subjected to post-processing, including heat treatment, stretching and shaping.

9. The method for preparing an aerogel composite fiber material according to claim 8, characterized in that: In step S6, the heat treatment temperature is 120-180° C. and the time is 10-60 minutes.

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