SBIR Phase II: Mass Produced, Flexible Insulation for Non-Combustible Buildings and Other High-Temperature Applications

小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第二阶段项目的更广泛影响是利用热能管理同时提高建筑的可负担性、舒适性和安全性，最初的重点是满足市场对不可燃建筑绝缘的迫切需求。该项目将专注于开发一种轻质、易于安装、不可燃的绝缘产品，同时也是环保和无毒的。建筑火灾占美国火灾总数的37%。这些火灾造成了123亿美元的财产损失和80%的平民火灾死亡。美国西部的野火加剧了这一局面的紧迫性，那里有2200亿美元的住宅建设位于野火易发区。矿棉是目前唯一可用的不可燃绝缘产品，但安装时需要个人防护装备，最近被归类为致癌产品。完全不可燃的建筑绝缘是一个高增长的市场，所有类型的不可燃绝缘的更广阔的市场代表着一个重要的机遇。该二期工程旨在以经济高效的方式为新建和改造建筑增加节能、不可燃建筑的供应，同时满足能源使用最密集的高温工业市场的需求。这项小型企业创新研究(SBIR)二期工程寻求扩大新型纳米复合绝缘产品的规模，该产品使用一种用于无机气凝胶绝缘的专有发泡工艺，该工艺可将收缩降至最低(从而使绝缘性能的孔隙率最大化，并将材料和加工成本降至最低)。这种方法利用粘土和二氧化硅等容易获得的材料，以及潜在的可再生纤维素生物质，为不可燃建筑生产一种环保、高性能的绝缘产品，该产品易于安装、重量轻且无毒。在现有制造设备上成功扩展这种方法可能会解决材料研究的一个重大挑战，创造出与玻璃纤维、矿棉和塑料泡沫等现有产品相比具有竞争力的隔热用有机-无机纳米复合材料。第二阶段的项目可能会产生第一种完全不可燃的工业工程隔热复合材料。柔性聚合物和辐射阻挡添加剂的集成还将使其能够用于高温工业管道绝缘，这是一种关键的节能应用，大多数现有产品由于辐射损失而存在显著限制。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project is utilizing thermal energy management to simultaneously improve the affordability, comfort, and safety of buildings, with an initial focus on meeting urgent market demand for non-combustible building insulation. This project will focus on developing a lightweight, easy-to-install, non-combustible insulation product which is also eco-friendly and non-toxic. Structure fires represent 37% of all fires in the US. These fires caused $12.3 billion in property damage and 80% of civilian fire deaths. Wildfires in the Western US, where $220 billion in residential construction is in “extreme” wildfire-prone areas, add to the urgency of this situation. Mineral wool is the only non-combustible insulation product available today but requires personal protective equipment for installation and was recently classified as carcinogenic. Fully non-combustible building insulation is a high growth market, and the broader market for all types of non-flammable insulation represents a significant opportunity. This Phase II project seeks to cost-effectively increase the supply of energy-efficient, non-combustible buildings for both new and retrofit construction, while also addressing high-temperature industrial markets which have the most intensive energy use.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project seeks to scale up a novel nanocomposite insulation product using a proprietary foaming process for inorganic aerogel-based insulation that minimizes shrinkage (thus maximizing porosity for insulation performance and minimizing material and processing cost). This approach leverages readily available materials such as clay and silica, as well as potentially renewable cellulose biomass, to produce an environmentally friendly, high performance insulation product for non-combustible buildings which is easy to install, lightweight, and non-toxic. Successfully scaling this approach on existing manufacturing equipment may solve a significant materials research challenge, creating organic-inorganic nanocomposites for thermal insulation with a competitive cost / performance ratio versus incumbent products such as fiberglass, mineral wool, and plastic foams. The Phase II project may result in the first industrially-engineered composite material for thermal insulation which is fully non-combustible. The integration of flexible polymers and radiation blocking additives would also enable use for high-temperature industrial pipe insulation, a critical energy-saving application where most existing products have significant limitations due to radiation loss.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.