A Universal Aerogel-Coating Strategy for Interfacial Thermo-Mechanical Enhancement of Protective Textiles

Kevlar fabrics (KFabrics) are widely employed in firefighting and industrial applications, yet the weak inter-yarn interaction and discrete yarn architecture leave wearers to stabbing and thermal hazards, posing a significant safety challenge. Herein, we incorporate aerogel porous networks into interwoven yarns of KFabrics to enhance protection against mechanical impact, heat, and flame. Through sequential coating, drying, and hydrophobization, the porous networks evolve into a flexible Janus configuration on KFabrics with only a 7.1% rise in areal density. Its front side, featuring micron-sized pores, enables a low thermal conductivity (31.8 mW m^-1 K^-1) and durable load-bearing behavior under 1300°C flame. The backside incorporates aerogel nanofibers that extensively bridge yarns, strengthening sliding constraint on yarns and improving puncture energy by 888%. Consequently, the modified KFabrics deliver 28.2 times higher ballistic specific energy dissipation than stainless steel plates (1344 vs. 46 J cm² g^-1). Benefiting from the breathable and hydrophobic porous networks, KFabrics retain nearly unchanged weight and morphology, as well as slightly increased thermal conductivity, after 100 washing-drying cycles. Such an aerogel-reinforced strategy is also applicable to other fabrics, like PBO, UHMWPE, and PI, concurrently boosting stab resistance and heat insulation. This work establishes a universal paradigm for engineering multifunctional protective textiles.