Aerogel Launch Factory

Aerogel applications: Support from development to market maturity

The Aerogel Launch Factory (ALF) in Jülich has received funding from the federal government (BMWK) and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia (MWIKE). This enables the planning of a central technology transfer centre that supports technology-driven start-ups and innovative companies. A possible initial pilot production will enable them to realise their ideas, convince investors and raise funds to set up industrial production. ALF combines expertise from research, transfer and production.

Aerogels are ultra-light super materials with excellent insulating properties that are able to bind toxic substances. They can be flexible, resistant to high temperatures, mouldable and electrically conductive. Due to their production from renewable raw materials, they can also be used sustainably.

The Aerogel Launch Factory will create a centre in which specialised research on aerogels can be carried out across various technology levels.

Research, transfer and production of aerogel applications

Climate change, scarcity of resources and a lack of energy efficiency are just some of the issues that aerogel applications in various forms and areas of use can help to address.

However, there are obstacles to the lack of commercial use of aerogels. The extensive testing of aerogel applications for commercial use is expensive and research-intensive. As a result, there is often a lack of broad-based proof of their functionality in industrial practice (samples, complex mechanical, acoustic and thermal loads under real conditions).

With the Aerogel Launch Factory, we empower companies to better test aerogels in their research and thus facilitate the entry of aerogel solutions into the market. We provide infrastructure and expertise and want to ensure that start-ups and companies have the confidence to use aerogels for their applications.

Aerogels: research areas and focus applications

The unique properties of aerogels enable a wide range of applications that go far beyond traditional thermal insulation. New areas of application include biomedicine, filtration, sound insulation, biodegradable packaging and thermal and electrical energy storage.

The Aerogel Launch Factory will support start-ups and technology-driven companies in these and possible other areas in their development and in reaching market maturity.

Aerogels can be used in the following areas, among others:

Building material development: High Performance Aerogel Concrete (HPAC) - extremely lightweight, high thermal and acoustic insulation with high load-bearing capacity.
Electrochemical storage: metal-sulphur batteries with carbon aerogels - soon to be spun off for production in the Rhineland mining area.
Hydrogen technology: Aerogels for thermal and acoustic insulation - suitable for temperatures from a few Kelvin to over 1000°C.
Renewable raw materials, recycling, circular economy: Biological aerogels from waste - diverse applications and high recycling rate.
Reduction of emissions, efficient production, environmental protection: carbon aerogels as additives in the casting process - significant reduction of emissions.