Designing MOF-Cellulose Bio-Aerogels for Electromagnetic Management and Fire-Acoustic Safety.

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Sustainable Chemistry

Background:

• Aerogels offer potential for electromagnetic absorption, thermal insulation, and acoustic damping.
• Conventional aerogels face challenges in functionality, manufacturing complexity, and sustainability.
• Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) provide tunable properties for high-performance aerogels, but sustainable MOF-based aerogels remain a challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a sustainable, multifunctional bio-aerogel by integrating MOFs with cellulose.
• To investigate the performance of the novel bio-aerogel in electromagnetic absorption, thermal insulation, and acoustic damping.
• To explore a simple and sustainable manufacturing process for advanced aerogels.

Main Methods:

• Hierarchical Ni-MOF-NH2 integrated with cellulose using deep eutectic solvent pretreatment.
• Stepwise assembly and carbonization process to create the bio-aerogel (Ni-CCA).
• Characterization of structural, electromagnetic, thermal, flame retardant, and acoustic properties.

Main Results:

• Ni-CCA exhibits ultralow density and a 3D layered porous structure.
• Achieved minimum reflection loss of -53.47 dB and effective absorption bandwidth of 4.42 GHz.
• Demonstrated enhanced flame retardancy (64.3% reduction in peak heat release), low thermal conductivity (33.3 mW/(m·K)), and effective acoustic damping (NRC of 0.31).

Conclusions:

• The developed Ni-CCA bio-aerogel offers a sustainable and effective solution for multifunctional applications.
• Hierarchical architecture and synergistic loss mechanisms contribute to the material's superior performance.
• Presents a promising strategy for next-generation lightweight multifunctional protective materials.