Aerogel Backpack Components

[Michael F]

So…I’ve got some machinable aerogel… 11″ x 11″ x 0.3″

it’s Aerogel X114-H to be exact.

It seems I could make larger buckles at nearly the same weight as tiny ones. I can’t make super small clasps because the material is not good for that… but a 1.5 – 2″ buckle could theoretically be made to be as light or lighter as 1/2 – 3/4″ buckles we all use now.

This material is really overpriced currently so I don’t have access to a lot of it.
I figured the member here would be interested in something like this and might want to help.

[Michael F]

Just an FYI since someone might ask. I don’t think I could really sell them at this scale. With tax and mailing it was just  a little over 500 USD to acquire this less than 1sqft piece. Someone would have to pay like 50 bucks for a single clasp…it would make no sense really. This is only an experiment for now, commercial uses for materials like this might be on the horizon though if my tests go well.

I’m the only one person working on any of my ideas so updates may be infrequent but I will be around

[Hoosier T]

Uhhh, there like .1 oz difference between a 3/4″ and 1″ buckle. That’s the most expensive .1 oz I’ve ever encountered.

[JCH]

Michael – I’m very confused about what we are attempting to accomplish…and I hate feeling stupid :)   Exactly what do you anticipate this $50 buckle would provide, over what a $3 buckle provides?

[Franco Darioli]

Does Aero Gel have the tensile strength required for a buckle ?

I know that it does very well with compression tests but don’t know the other way around.

[Jerry Adams]

how much does your piece weigh?

maybe backpack stays or panel, although 11″ is too short

[Michael F]

I dont have a big enough scale for it , so when I cut it, I will weigh a piece, but it feels like styrofoam-ish in terms of weight.

for people asking what is the point. this is for proof of concept, I know the gains are marginal, this is just a person trying to push the limitations of what is possible in the modern age

[Franco Darioli]

If you have a pot or basin large enough you could fill it then put the cube in it and then measure the weight of the water displaced by the cube.

You will be very very close to the real weight.

[Bob Moulder]

A cubic meter weighs 160g.

The day will come (as manufacturing costs drop dramatically) when this stuff sees widespread application. But starting off with astronomically expensive backpack buckles seems to me a very odd way to utilize the material. Even if it were cheap it’d still be odd.

|:^/

[Jerry Adams]

yeah, a regular buckle weighs so little you won’t save much

better to replace something that at least weighs a few ounces.  Or a pound.

[JCH]

Hmmmmm….Aerogel Bear Canister?  :)

[Bob Moulder]

bear can

Now yer talkin’!  ;^)

[Colin Krusor]

The ultimate tensile strength claimed for that polyimide aerogel is higher than solid polyimide. Taking into account polymer orientation, etc., you still generally can’t make a monolithic foam out of something and end up with absolute tensile strength (not specific tensile strength) higher than the solid. It is lightweight because there is less material. Those numbers are wrong.

I have to agree with others who have questioned this material choice. Making a load-bearing buckle out of foam seems foolish to me. If you want to spend a lot of money to save one gram, machine a buckle out of PEEK or a composite. Make a pot lid or a base for a pot cozy out of the aerogel.

Before you waste a big piece of that material, buy a strip of Delrin. Then cut a piece of the PI aerogel of the same dimensions, and pull and flex them. Punch holes at the ends and hang something heavy from it. See how it compares to Delrin (a common plastic in buckles).

Also, please share the result.

 

 

 

[Michael F]

in reply to bob moulder, I’m not sure what I will make yet really. I was thinking buckles/clasps of some sort…this stuff is pretty precious so a many different applications will be thoroughly considered before fabricating anything …might end up being used for something entirely different

I was just kind of putting the word out there, maybe you guys have a better idea. :)

[Matt Dirksen]

I’ve been hearing about Aerogel for many years in the building industry. (I even have a sample in my basement). But as far as I’m concerned, it’s current “best use” has to do with Aerogel having an extremely high R value per inch – excellent for pipe insulation in particular. And it has fire resistance characteristics as well.

I do think not only will it’s cost will come down, but as new types of Aerogel emerge, new applications will follow.

Oros uses it in their jackets.

Matt

[Colin Krusor]

If you have some left over, it would make the world’s best insulated gloves. You could probably turn out a pretty impressive pair of very warm MYOG gloves without too much bulk using a mosaic of little pieces of the PI aerogel. This stuff is the solution to the problem of glove insulation, I think.

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