aerogel

noun

aero·​gel ˈer-ō-ˌjel 

plural aerogels

: a light, highly porous solid formed by replacement of liquid in a gel (see gel entry 1 sense 1) with a gas so that the resulting solid is the same size as the original

By extracting the fluid from a wet gel under pressure and at a high temperature he was able to produce extremely light materials with porosities as high as 98 percent. Kistler called the solids aerogels.

—Jochen Fricke

Silica aerogel is so light that engineers sometimes call it "solid smoke." This low weight combined with excellent sound, thermal and electrical insulating properties would make aerogel ideal for a host of consumer products, were it not so expensive to produce.

—Popular Mechanics

Examples of aerogel in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Gould says by varying how the aerogel is prepared, the material can be used for insulating the pipes associated with liquified natural gas transport, refineries, and subsea oil exploration and extraction. —Ari Daniel, NPR, 9 Dec. 2024

The search for environmentally friendlier methods that skip those additional steps has led materials scientists down some unusual alleyways: For instance, an aerogel made from whey protein—a cheese by-product—can capture gold ions from computer motherboards bathed in acid. —Ben Guarino, Scientific American, 29 Oct. 2024

Putting aerogel into a foam overcomes some of the production challenges of the material. —Sj Studio, Sourcing Journal, 14 Aug. 2024

One recent study proposed that Mars colonists could spread aerogel, an ultralight solid material, on the ground. —Sven Bilén, Discover Magazine, 17 July 2024

In 1971, Carl Sagan suggested vaporizing the northern polar ice caps, while Harvard researchers argued in 2017 that large amounts of silica aerogel could trap enough heat to regionally instigate greenhouse warming conditions. —Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 8 Aug. 2024

This could be done all over Mars, including the polar ice caps, where the aerogel could melt the existing ice to make liquid water. —Sven Bilén, Discover Magazine, 17 July 2024

In addition to its featherlight nature, aerogel also exhibits antistatic properties and demonstrates excellent moisture management capabilities. —Angela Velasquez, Sourcing Journal, 4 July 2024

As a result, the temperature inside the aerogel increases, and the salty solution starts releasing water vapor, re-forming the original salt. —Rupendra Brahambhatt, Ars Technica, 25 Aug. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1923, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

aerogel

noun

aero·​gel

ˈer-ō-ˌjel

: a light highly porous solid formed by replacement of liquid in a gel with a gas so that the resulting solid is the same size as the original

Medical Definition

aerogel

noun

aero·​gel ˈa(-ə)r-ō-ˌjel, ˈe(-ə)r- 

: a highly porous solid formed by replacement of liquid in a gel with a gas so that there is little shrinkage