Flexible and thermally insulating porous materials utilizing hollow double-shell polymer fibers

Abstract

The global climate change is mainly caused by carbon dioxide ($CO_{2}$) emissions. To help reduce $CO_{2}$ emissions and conserve thermal energy, sustainable materials based on flexible thermal insulation are developed to minimize heat flux, drawing inspiration from natural systems such as polar bear hairs. The unique structure of hollow double-shell fibers makes it possible to achieve low thermal conductivity in the material while retaining exceptional elasticity, allowing it to adapt to insulation systems of any shape. The layered system of porous mats reaches a thermal conductivity coefficient of $0.031 W∙m^{−1}∙K^{−1}$ and enables to reduce the heat transfer. The results achieved using scanning thermal microscopy (SThM) correlate with the simulated heat flow in the case of individual fibers. This research study brings new insights into the energy efficiency of domestic environments, thereby addressing the growing demand for sustainable and high-performance insulation materials for saving energy loss and reducing pollution footprint.