[QUOTE=Acesarge;34700493]Could it be used to make firefighting gear lighter and more protective?[/QUOTE]
Possibly. There are so many factors that go into fire gear though (I have a family full of firefighters).
[QUOTE=Squad;34699999]Well I tried size exclusion chromatography with polystyrene derivatives, but the particles have some kind of affinity with them and attach and never come back off the polystyrene. I then tried to use silica gel, but it couldn't pass through. I am still trying to find a good size of silica gel with a good particle size and pore size to allow the particles to flow through.
Oh and I tried a "gravity sedimentation" technique. Which made sense to me at the time to try and at least get general sized fractions. Shake them up, let the big particles sink and then repeat. Well, putting them under the microscope, I couldn't tell a difference between sizes of the different fractions, so I am fairly certain that didn't work.[/QUOTE]
Have you tried any kind of ultracentrifugation? The particles are just so small it's hard to really think of ways to separate them well.
[QUOTE=mike;34700882]Have you tried any kind of ultracentrifugation? The particles are just so small it's hard to really think of ways to separate them well.[/QUOTE]
I sure did. I meant to mention that. It worked better than gravity, but still wasn't quite what we were looking for.
It is actually possible to synthesize the particles any size I want and produce them accurately at that size. The way to do that is by using reverse micelles to react the reagents together.
What if you tried the experiment in space? Would the low gravity environment have an effect on what is formed and how?
I imagine it'd be like performing the experiment in a microgravity apparatus here on Earth.
[QUOTE=Squad;34704327]I sure did. I meant to mention that. It worked better than gravity, but still wasn't quite what we were looking for.
It is actually possible to synthesize the particles any size I want and produce them accurately at that size. The way to do that is by using reverse micelles to react the reagents together.[/QUOTE]
ahh, kinda analogous to emulsion polymerisation. that's pretty smart.
[QUOTE=mike;34708725]ahh, kinda analogous to emulsion polymerisation. that's pretty smart.[/QUOTE]
Well, that conversation went over my head.
[QUOTE=mike;34708725]ahh, kinda analogous to emulsion polymerisation. that's pretty smart.[/QUOTE]
Yeah.
Basically what I do now is throw them in a 1 liter reaction flask with all the components and heat it up and let them do their thing. With the micelles it is like having hundreds or thousands of reaction flasks floating around.
[QUOTE=Squad;34711563]Yeah.
Basically what I do now is throw them in a 1 liter reaction flask with all the components and heat it up and let them do their thing. With the micelles it is like having hundreds or thousands of reaction flasks floating around.[/QUOTE]
Sounds like a fire hazard.
[QUOTE=The one that is;34727255]Sounds like a fire hazard.[/QUOTE]
that depends on the solvent. and even if you're using something like ether as a solvent it's not an issue because it's in a fume hood and you never used naked flames so the chances of fire are pretty low.
Ah.
[QUOTE=The one that is;34727255]Sounds like a fire hazard.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, not really that much of a fire hazard. I was heating it, but I was not heating it anywhere near the flash point. The system was under argon at all times and of course it was in a fume hood with no open flames near by.
Aerogel containers would be great for backpacking, light weight and could keep food and drink warm/cold. Also Aerogel materials would make great emergency blankets/clothing for hypothermia treatment.
Would a small aerogram square/glove work as a hand warmer if it reflects heat so well? If so you could have a small piece or even areogel lined pockets you could heat your hands over and over right? I know when I am hiking/camping in the cold I keep hand warmers in a airtight bag to stop them from reacting when I am not using them (Good trick to get several uses out of one pack).
Also could this be used to make a portable fire container? I know there are several places I camp that do not allow/have fire pits; if you had a small aerogel container you could make a fire and carry it around (possibly move it even when there is still a fire in it). This would be useful when you are camping in multiple locations such as on a multiple day backpacking trip. It would also reduce the damage to the environment caused by traditional fire pits.
[QUOTE=imptastick;34735677]Aerogel containers would be great for backpacking, light weight and could keep food and drink warm/cold. Also Aerogel materials would make great emergency blankets/clothing for hypothermia treatment.
Would a small aerogram square/glove work as a hand warmer if it reflects heat so well? If so you could have a small piece or even areogel lined pockets you could heat your hands over and over right? I know when I am hiking/camping in the cold I keep hand warmers in a airtight bag to stop them from reacting when I am not using them (Good trick to get several uses out of one pack).
Also could this be used to make a portable fire container? I know there are several places I camp that do not allow/have fire pits; if you had a small aerogel container you could make a fire and carry it around (possibly move it even when there is still a fire in it). This would be useful when you are camping in multiple locations such as on a multiple day backpacking trip. It would also reduce the damage to the environment caused by traditional fire pits.[/QUOTE]
The heat would damage the structure. It insulates well the fire would constantly dump energy into the container and eventually would destroy the material.
If done right it could possibly create a nice emergency blanket or something of that nature. But if it acts anything like Thinsulate (3M) product it can get pretty warm and have no way to relieve the heat. Emergency blanket would be nice, a blanket for a regular bed, not so much.
[QUOTE=Squad;34735899]The heat would damage the structure. It insulates well the fire would constantly dump energy into the container and eventually would destroy the material.
If done right it could possibly create a nice emergency blanket or something of that nature. But if it acts anything like Thinsulate (3M) product it can get pretty warm and have no way to relieve the heat. Emergency blanket would be nice, a blanket for a regular bed, not so much.[/QUOTE]
Thought it might withstand the heat after watching this
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCVw9PSDQRw[/media]
That must be a different derivative of the Aerogel then what I made. I don't know much about the other forms of the material. After seeing that, that is extremely interesting. But again, you have to keep in mind that if it is that insulating, your body heat definitely won't escape and you will sweat a lot more.
Depending on the situation this could be bad. I guess what I am trying to say is there are a lot of pros and cons to weigh out before making any judgements.
[QUOTE=Squad;34736191]That must be a different derivative of the Aerogel then what I made. I don't know much about the other forms of the material. After seeing that, that is extremely interesting. But again, you have to keep in mind that if it is that insulating, your body heat definitely won't escape and you will sweat a lot more.
Depending on the situation this could be bad. I guess what I am trying to say is there are a lot of pros and cons to weigh out before making any judgements.[/QUOTE]
I know it would not work for traditional clothing but something like emergency blankets or gloves could be removed after warming someone up
For all the people suggesting coffee mugs. You have to remember that this stuff is as brittle as fuck. If you drop the mug from say, 10cm, you'll shatter it.
[QUOTE=The Aussie;34736828]For all the people suggesting coffee mugs. You have to remember that this stuff is as brittle as fuck. If you drop the mug from say, 10cm, you'll shatter it.[/QUOTE]
You'd want to surround/embed it in a stronger material of course, insulated cups normally aren't made out of the insulating material, they're made out of plastic/metal (or such) with the material inside that.
The heat from a thermocup generally disperses mostly through the lid, not the walls - there's a vacuum there which does a better job at blocking heat than aerogel (logically)
[QUOTE=Elexar;34739108]The heat from a thermocup generally disperses mostly through the lid, not the walls - there's a vacuum there which does a better job at blocking heat than aerogel (logically)[/QUOTE]
Vacuums do a good job at this, but can be dangerous for consumers. I have seen dewers explode, not something I would want to be holding in my hand when it happens.
True, also a reason why you had to deliver old tv's or monitors at a designated place - throw them in a container yourself and you run the risk of the tube imploding once it cracks. I can see why theyre looking at aerogel for a replacement of a vacuum.
[editline]17th February 2012[/editline]
Ive never seen thermocups explode though, thats news to me!
I saw some show on TV where they tried to make an anti bushfire cover for a house using aerogel covered with that black carbon fabric which race drivers use.
It worked for the most part, except the seams were shit and began to burn apart.
[QUOTE=Elexar;34744021]True, also a reason why you had to deliver old tv's or monitors at a designated place - throw them in a container yourself and you run the risk of the tube imploding once it cracks. I can see why theyre looking at aerogel for a replacement of a vacuum.
[editline]17th February 2012[/editline]
Ive never seen thermocups explode though, thats news to me![/QUOTE]
Thermocups don't really have that strong of a vacuum if any in them usually. It is just a double layer sealed with an inert gas of some sort. The dewers used for liquid nitrogen are vacuum sealed between the metal plates so they can explode without warning.
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