Introduction: During the January 2004 encounter of the Stardust space probe with comet 81P/Wild 2, a collector containing aerogel tiles was exposed to the cometary particle flux and returned to Earth in January 2006 [1–3]. Most studies so far focused on the millimeter long cavities or tracks in the aerogel, produced by micrometer sized cometary particles [3]. Cometary material has been identifi...

Introduction: The use of aerogel as a capture medium for particles traveling at high speeds has been long established (see [1] for a recent review). Aerogel collectors have several times been deployed in Low Earth Orbit. Recently, the Stardust space mission [2] has returned to Earth (Jan. 2006) carrying aerogel which was used to collect an estimated 2800±500 freshly emitted cometary dust grains...

A carbon aerogel was obtained by carbonization of an organic aerogel prepared by sol-gel polymerization of resorcinol and formaldehyde in water. The carbon aerogel was then CO(2) activated at 800 degrees C to increase its surface area and widen its microporosity. Evolution of these parameters was followed by gas adsorption and small- and wide-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS and WAXS, respectively)...

We report the first observation of two-dimensional layer modes in both fully filled and partially filled aerogel. Using complementary high-energy resolution and high statistical precision neutron scattering instruments, and two different 87% porous aerogel samples, we show that the three-dimensional (3D) phonon-roton excitation energies and lifetimes of liquid 4He in aerogel are the same as in ...

Cellulose nanofibril (CNF) aerogels with grafted beta-cyclodextrin (β-CD) were prepared for the adsorption of phenol pollutants from water. Compared with regular wood fibers, CNF aerogel not only can immobilize more β-CDs, but also it provides higher porosity and a larger specific surface area for phenol absorption. The CNF-CD aerogel becomes mechanically robust through chemical crosslinking. I...

We report optofluidic waveguides made by filling microchannels in aerogel with water. The aerogel cladding is a nanoporous material with an extremely low refractive index of ~1.05, giving a large index step from the water core. Channels were formed by removing embedded optical fibers, which could be nonuniform or multiple. The porosity of the aerogel allowed air to be displaced from the channel...

We present a combined experimental and theoretical study of the drag force acting on a high porosity aerogel immersed in liquid (3)He and its effect on sound propagation. The drag force is characterized by the Knudsen number, which is defined as the ratio of the quasiparticle mean free path to the radius of an aerogel strand. Evidence of the Knudsen-hydrodynamic crossover is clearly demonstrate...

We have developed a Monte-Carlo simulation code for an aerogel Čerenkov Counter which is operated under a strong magnetic field such as 1.5T. This code consists of two parts: photon transportation inside aerogel tiles, and one-dimensional amplification in a fine-mesh photomultiplier tube. It simulates the output photoelectron yields as accurately as 5% with only a single free parameter. This co...

The presented paper contains a brief review on the synthesis and characterization of silica aerogels and its nanocomposites with nanofibers and fibers based on a literature study over the past twenty years and my own research. Particular attention is focused on carbon fiber-based silica aerogel nanocomposites. Silica aerogel is brittle in nature, therefore, it is necessary to improve this drawb...

An a.c. calorimetric study has been carried out on octylphenylthiolpentyloxybenzoate (8ÂS5) in three silica aerogels with mass densities r=0 0́8, 0 1́7 and 0 3́6 g cm Õ 3 . Results for the least porous aerogel (r=0 3́6) are completely consistent with those reported previously for 8CB in the same aerogel. Freezing of 8ÂS5 damaged the more porous r=0 0́8 and 0 1́7 aerogels by creating internal voids an...