Facile synthesis of 3D porous SiCNWs/Ti₃C₂T_x/RGO composite aerogels with electromagnetic wave absorption and thermal insulation properties

At present, the preparation of absorbing materials that combine light weight, ultra-wideband absorption and good thermal insulation performance is still an insurmountable gap. Here, we constructed a three-dimensional porous structure in the hope of obtaining excellent microwave absorption and heat insulation properties. In this paper, a unique three-dimensional porous SiCNWs/Ti₃C₂T_x/RGO (STR) aerogel was prepared by hydrothermal treatment. When the mass ratio of SiCNWs, Ti₃C₂T_x and GO is 2:1:1, the effective absorption bandwidth of STR aerogel reaches 8.10 GHz (9.90–18.00 GHz). Moreover, the porous structure can effectively reduce the heat radiation transfer. After heating at 300 ℃ for 1 h, STR aerogel can effectively isolate the temperature of about 160 ℃, which proves that STR has good thermal insulation performance. In addition, the formation mechanism of the STR aerogels and the mechanism of thermal insulation and electromagnetic wave absorption of aerogels are also discussed, which will contribute to the development and application of new lightweight stealth material.