aerogel
noun
aero·gel
ˈer-ō-ˌjel 
plural aerogels
: a light, highly porous solid formed by replacement of liquid in a gel (see gel entry 1 sense 1) with a gas so that the resulting solid is the same size as the original
By extracting the fluid from a wet gel under pressure and at a high temperature he was able to produce extremely light materials with porosities as high as 98 percent. Kistler called the solids aerogels.—
Jochen Fricke
Jochen FrickeSilica aerogel is so light that engineers sometimes call it "solid smoke." This low weight combined with excellent sound, thermal and electrical insulating properties would make aerogel ideal for a host of consumer products, were it not so expensive to produce.—Popular Mechanics
Popular MechanicsExamples of aerogel in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Others are experimenting with new polymer aerogel materials based on penguin feathers that could have applications for building insulation and climate control, showing the wide variety of applications that can be based on one particularly specialized group of birds.
—Ian Rose, Smithsonian Magazine, 10 June 2025
Commercial production ceased in the 1970s, but aerogels began their second chapter in the 1990s as NASA set out to create a more easily usable, flexible version of the material than the brittle, costly aerogels previously accessible.
—Sj Studio, Sourcing Journal, 14 Aug. 2024
Professor Wordsworth, meanwhile, says silica derived from Martian rocks could be transformed into aerogel to craft habitats and biospheres across these off-world bases.
—Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes.com, 24 May 2025
Gould says by varying how the aerogel is prepared, the material can be used for insulating the pipes associated with liquified natural gas transport, refineries, and subsea oil exploration and extraction.
—Ari Daniel, NPR, 9 Dec. 2024
The search for environmentally friendlier methods that skip those additional steps has led materials scientists down some unusual alleyways: For instance, an aerogel made from whey protein—a cheese by-product—can capture gold ions from computer motherboards bathed in acid.
—Ben Guarino, Scientific American, 29 Oct. 2024
Putting aerogel into a foam overcomes some of the production challenges of the material.
—Sj Studio, Sourcing Journal, 14 Aug. 2024
One recent study proposed that Mars colonists could spread aerogel, an ultralight solid material, on the ground.
—Sven Bilén, Discover Magazine, 17 July 2024
In 1971, Carl Sagan suggested vaporizing the northern polar ice caps, while Harvard researchers argued in 2017 that large amounts of silica aerogel could trap enough heat to regionally instigate greenhouse warming conditions.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 8 Aug. 2024
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Ian Rose, Smithsonian Magazine, 10 June 2025
Commercial production ceased in the 1970s, but aerogels began their second chapter in the 1990s as NASA set out to create a more easily usable, flexible version of the material than the brittle, costly aerogels previously accessible.
—Sj Studio, Sourcing Journal, 14 Aug. 2024
Professor Wordsworth, meanwhile, says silica derived from Martian rocks could be transformed into aerogel to craft habitats and biospheres across these off-world bases.
—Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes.com, 24 May 2025
Gould says by varying how the aerogel is prepared, the material can be used for insulating the pipes associated with liquified natural gas transport, refineries, and subsea oil exploration and extraction.
—Ari Daniel, NPR, 9 Dec. 2024
The search for environmentally friendlier methods that skip those additional steps has led materials scientists down some unusual alleyways: For instance, an aerogel made from whey protein—a cheese by-product—can capture gold ions from computer motherboards bathed in acid.
—Ben Guarino, Scientific American, 29 Oct. 2024
Putting aerogel into a foam overcomes some of the production challenges of the material.
—Sj Studio, Sourcing Journal, 14 Aug. 2024
One recent study proposed that Mars colonists could spread aerogel, an ultralight solid material, on the ground.
—Sven Bilén, Discover Magazine, 17 July 2024
In 1971, Carl Sagan suggested vaporizing the northern polar ice caps, while Harvard researchers argued in 2017 that large amounts of silica aerogel could trap enough heat to regionally instigate greenhouse warming conditions.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 8 Aug. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Aerogel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aerogel. Accessed 12 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
aerogel
noun
aero·gel
ˈa(-ə)r-ō-ˌjel, ˈe(-ə)r-
: a highly porous solid formed by replacement of liquid in a gel with a gas so that there is little shrinkage
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