Mineralization of clay/polymer aerogels: a bioinspired approach to composite reinforcement.

Clay aerogels, ultra low density materials made via a simple freeze-drying technique, have shown much promise in broad applications because of their low densities, often in the same range as silica aerogels (0.03-0.3 g/cm(3),) but suffering from low mechanical strength. A bioinspired approach to mineralize an active polymer/clay aerogel composite is inspected, showing marked improvement of the mechanical properties with increasing modification. Further property improvement was achieved using a layer-by-layer approach to produce alternate layers of polymer and silica on the surface.