Abstract
A fluidized bed drying approach was utilized to the synthesis of water glass based silica aerogel powders. The effects of the fluidized bed drying conditions such as the superficial velocity and temperature of hot air and bead size as well as bead/wet-gel ratio, on the physical properties such as tapping density and productivity of the aerogel powders were systematically investigated. The experimental results showed that the amount of beads mixed with wet-gels in the fluidized bed column has the most profound impact on the fluidization efficiency, greatly enhancing the yield of the aerogel powders up to 98% with a proper bead/wet-gel weight ratio as compared to 72% without using beads. No significant change was observed in the tapping density over a wide range of the fluidized drying condition. Consequently the fluidized bed drying approach shows a good promise as an alternative route for the large-scale production of the aerogel powders.
