Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
7.6
5.3
Journals
Gels
Special Issues
Aerogels and Composites Aerogels
share announcement

Aerogels and Composites Aerogels

A special issue of Gels (ISSN 2310-2861). This special issue belongs to the section "Gel Chemistry and Physics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 March 2026) | Viewed by 2964

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Zhongming Liu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
State Key Laboratory of Green Papermaking and Resource Recycling, Qilu University of Technology, Shandong Academy of Sciences, Jinan 250353, China
Interests: biobased functional materials; hydrogel; aerogel
Dr. Luísa Durães

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
CERES—Chemical Engineering and Renewable Resources for Sustainability, Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Coimbra, 3000-370 Coimbra, Portugal
Interests: aerogels; nanoparticles; composites; sol-gel; soft solution synthesis; functional nanomaterials; environmental remediation; thermal insulation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Pasquale Del Gaudio

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pharmacy, University of Salerno, 84084 Fisciano, Italy
Interests: hydrogels; aerogels; controlled drug delivery; wound healing; carbohydrate polymers; microparticles; nanoparticles; nanocomposite; 3D printing
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Aerogel is a kind of porous solid material with high porosity, mainly in the mesopores range, which leads to high specific surface area and very low density. Therefore, they are suitable for adsorption, separation, catalysis, biological science, thermal insulation, and other fields. However, due to the poor mechanical performance of pristine aerogels, their effective mass production and application are limited. Composite aerogels can be a response to overcome these limitations and were prepared by physical blending, chemical modification, and other technologies, revealing their microstructure regulation mechanism, achieving leapfrog improvement in performance, and laying the foundation for the widespread application of aerogels.

This Special Issue aims to provide an opportunity for researchers to contribute to the dissemination of the latest research and development in aerogels and composite aerogels. The topics of interest include but are not limited to the following: bio-based composite aerogels, organic composite aerogels, inorganic composite aerogels, metal composite aerogels, carbon composite aerogels, etc. The application fields are adsorption, separation, catalysis, biological/biomedical science, thermal insulation, energy production and storage, and other fields.

Dr. Zhongming Liu
Dr. Luísa Durães
Prof. Dr. Pasquale Del Gaudio
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Gels is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2100 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • aerogel
  • composite aerogel
  • synthesis and characterization
  • physicochemical properties
  • application

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

16 pages, 4814 KB  
Article
Tailoring the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Phenolic Aerogels with Graphene Oxide
by Congyan Hu, Lei Chen, Zixuan Lei, Yafei Li, Liwei Wang, Yiming Yang, Tong Zhao and Hao Li
Gels 2026, 12(1), 34; https://doi.org/10.3390/gels12010034 - 30 Dec 2025
Viewed by 702
Abstract
Phenolic aerogels offer low thermal conductivity, excellent thermal stability, and high char yield, but they suffer from intrinsic brittleness, low compressive modulus, and limited compressive strain. To overcome these limitations, phenolic aerogels modified with graphene oxide were synthesized and their structural, mechanical, and [...] Read more.
Phenolic aerogels offer low thermal conductivity, excellent thermal stability, and high char yield, but they suffer from intrinsic brittleness, low compressive modulus, and limited compressive strain. To overcome these limitations, phenolic aerogels modified with graphene oxide were synthesized and their structural, mechanical, and thermal insulation properties were evaluated. The GO fillers were uniformly dispersed in the phenolic matrix without disrupting its porous structure. Mechanical testing revealed that the modified aerogel achieved a compressive modulus of 265.52 MPa, representing a 67% increase over the pure phenolic aerogel’s value of 158.49 MPa, and a compressive strength of 40.19 MPa, compared to 6.18 MPa, for the pure sample. At the same time, the composite maintained good thermal insulation performance, with a thermal conductivity of 0.063 W·m−1·K−1. This work demonstrates a feasible approach to tailoring the structure–property relationship of phenolic aerogels via GO modification, supporting their potential use in high-temperature insulation and lightweight structural applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Aerogels and Composites Aerogels)
►▼ Show Figures

Graphical abstract

20 pages, 11379 KB  
Article
Silk Fibroin–Alginate Aerogel Beads Produced by Supercritical CO2 Drying: A Dual-Function Conformable and Haemostatic Dressing
by Maria Rosaria Sellitto, Domenico Larobina, Chiara De Soricellis, Chiara Amante, Giovanni Falcone, Paola Russo, Beatriz G. Bernardes, Ana Leite Oliveira and Pasquale Del Gaudio
Gels 2025, 11(8), 603; https://doi.org/10.3390/gels11080603 - 2 Aug 2025
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1883
Abstract
Infection control and bleeding management in deep wounds remain urgent and unmet clinical challenges that demand innovative, multifunctional, and sustainable solutions. Unlike previously reported sodium alginate and silk fibroin-based gel formulations, the present work introduces a dual-functional system combining antimicrobial and haemostatic activity [...] Read more.
Infection control and bleeding management in deep wounds remain urgent and unmet clinical challenges that demand innovative, multifunctional, and sustainable solutions. Unlike previously reported sodium alginate and silk fibroin-based gel formulations, the present work introduces a dual-functional system combining antimicrobial and haemostatic activity in the form of conformable aerogel beads. This dual-functional formulation is designed to absorb exudate, promote clotting, and provide localized antimicrobial action, all essential for accelerating wound repair in high-risk scenarios within a single biocompatible system. Aerogel beads were obtained by supercritical drying of a silk fibroin–sodium alginate blend, resulting in highly porous, spherical structures measuring 3–4 mm in diameter. The formulations demonstrated efficient ciprofloxacin encapsulation (42.75–49.05%) and sustained drug release for up to 12 h. Fluid absorption reached up to four times their weight in simulated wound fluid and was accompanied by significantly enhanced blood clotting, outperforming a commercial haemostatic dressing. These findings highlight the potential of silk-based aerogel beads as a multifunctional wound healing platform that combines localized antimicrobial delivery, efficient fluid and exudate management, biodegradability, and superior haemostatic performance in a single formulation. This work also shows for the first time how the prilling encapsulation technique with supercritical drying is able to successfully produce silk fibroin and sodium alginate composite aerogel beads. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Aerogels and Composites Aerogels)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-2
Back to TopTop