New UL synthetic insulation from Primaloft

Here is a link,

https://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/516504

Eric,

Based on their patent application, WO2017087511A1, we know the following:

How does Primaloft combine synthetic fibers and Aero Gel? – Scrap aerogel is ground into fine granules and mixed with the liquid polyester used to create the large polyester fibers in the insulation.

How well does this new insulation deal with repeated stuffing and unstuffing? – They never tested it as part of the patent application. It should theoretically be slightly better than PL Gold because it has a smaller percentage of fine fibers and this is what fails first from compression.

How does Aero Gel handle getting soaking wet? – This insulation should handle water the same as PL Gold. The same fibers that are siliconized in PL Gold are siliconized in this insulation. The aerogel particles are embedded in polyester and so they can’t fill with water.

And has the “Unobtanium” of synthetic insulation finally come to pass? – No, PL Gold is .92 clo/oz new and this insulation is 1.16 clo/oz new. All synthetic insulations degrade their clo/oz through use.

800 FP down is 1.68 clo/oz, and 900+ FP down is 2.53 clo/oz. Down does not degrade through use.

Super answer Richard.Thanks.

Impressive technical analysis by Richard.

Thanks!

Thank you, Richard.

thanks

I assume it requires more baffles to keep stable like regular gold

clo/oz/yd2 for down, I don’t know that I’ve seen that before.  I assume that number will go down a bit if you overfill

Down clo/oz will stay approximately the same up to >250% overfill.

“800 FP down is 1.68 clo/oz, and 900+ FP down is 2.53 clo/oz. Down does not degrade through use.”

Richard, is there a typo in there, or perhaps I’m missing something? How can a 12.5% increase in fillpower (800 to 900) result in a 50% increase in clo/oz (1.68 to 2.53)?

Thanks Richard. Very interesting way that Primaloft combined Aerogel with their fibers.

For synthetic fill I think I’ll stay with Climashield’s iterations. I know it has decent resistance to loft loss from repeated stuffings.

BTW, I have an EB down 800 fill down vest with Dry Down DWR and an LL Bean -20 F. bag with 750 fill down with Down Tech DWR. What are your thoughts on various down DWR treatments? (i.e. in relation to loft retention in damp situations, not in soaking wet accidents.)

Eric,

I believe DWR down helps but I have not done any primary research on the various options.

It seems that the new synthetic does benefit somewhat from the aerogel. A portion of that is because of tighter manufacturing controls. The reduction in weight is always welcome. But, it still does not come close to down in insulating properties, compressibility or longevity. Thanks again, Richard!

Eric B,

900+ 

This addresses the range: 900 and higher FP; it is the highest clo/oz that I have seen. In other words, the best possible case, which is rare,