Freeze-casting production of thermal insulating and fire-retardant lightweight aerogels based on nanocellulose and boron nitride

Cellulose aerogels exhibit biocompatibility and biodegradability, rendering them promising candidate for application in building energy conservation and insulation materials. However, the intrinsic inflammability of pristine cellulose aerogel causes unneglectable safety concerns, hindering their application in energy-efficient buildings. Herein, a thermal insulating, fire-retardant, strong, and lightweight aerogel was produced via freeze-casting suspensions of cellulose nanofibril (CNF) and l-glutamine functionalized boron nitride nanosheets (BNNS-g). The aerogel with a BNNS-g:CNF concentration ratio of 15:5 exhibited outstanding mechanical strength owing to the strong interaction between BNNS-g and CNF as well as satisfactory thermal insulating performance (0.052 W/m·K). Particularly, this aerogel showed excellent fire-retardant and self-extinguishing capabilities in the vertical burning test, which remained unscathed after over 60 s of burning in a butane flame. Further, the limit oxygen index (LOI) of this aerogel was 36.0 %, which was better than the LOIs of traditional petrochemical-based insulating materials. This study provides a promising strategy for producing aerogels with excellent properties using cellulose and other inorganic nano-fillers.