Aerogel is one of those “weird” products with tremendous promise. It is almost 100% air so even a little child can handle lifting a fairly large piece. The problem is that it is so expensive, the average person can’t afford it and it is normally very brittle.
There are Aerogel products so strong that you can’t break it even if you smashed a piece with a hammer – a huge advancement. One of the most promising applications for this material is as a super insulator – considered the best by many – but again, it is just too expensive.
Check out the strength of this “unbreakable” Aerogel – http://www.buyaerogel.com/product/airloy-x103/ and you can see that a very small piece is very expensive.
Watch this video, a blow torch flame only about 1/3 of an inch under a Hershey Kiss piece of chocolate and it doesn’t even melt. If this Aerogel was affordable in large pieces some day and was used as the insulation standard for homes and businesses, that would cut one of the largest energy uses to a fraction of what it is. Heating and Cooling is roughly 50% of the average home energy cost but if you can hold on to what you want and keep out what you don’t, then that becomes an insignificant part of your power bill!
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