Potential Applications in Mechanical Damping

The Y value of the as-prepared aerogels was found to be 9.6 x 10 and 2.6 x 10 times smaller than those of Iron and Indium, respectively. The Y values of these aerogels are closer to those of rubber when compared with the metals mentioned above. It is only 2.6 X 10 times smaller than the Y value of rubber which is quite rarely observed in case of silica aerogels. This improvement in elastic modulus of superhydrophobic flexible aerogels with those of native silica aerogels is roughly two orders of magnitude. 

Therefore, MTMS and MTES aerogels can find use in minimal load and shock absorption or damping such as for example micromechanics applications. 

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