Thermal Insulation Coatings

With the lowest thermal conductivity in the market, aerogel coatings additives are revolutionizing the way the industry addresses thermal management.

Providing unmatched performance as an insulating additive, our ENOVA^® aerogel is the foundation of a new class of thermal insulative coatings. These products are resolving long standing issues in the areas of energy efficiency, safe touch and condensation control, all while bonding to the substrate surface, thus greatly minimizing the likelihood of corrosion under insulation (CUI). As depicted in the photo (right), in an effort to control condensation forming on water tanks and their associated piping, engineers selected Aerolon, an innovative, thermal insulating coating system from Tnemec with Cabot aerogel.

Energy efficiency

When dealing with conductive surfaces, most of the potential benefits that can be achieved through insulation come from the first very thin layer of protection. With excellent resistance to heat flow, highly-loaded aerogel coatings have the ability to greatly reduce heat loss with fractions of an inch of coating. In thermal modeling (3EPlus) and supporting testing, aerogel-based coatings have shown a more than 50% reduction in power needed to maintain temperature in heated tanks with as little as 150 mils (0.150 inches) of coating.

Safe touch

When incorporated into a safe touch coatings system, ENOVA aerogel products can help prevent contact burns and provide the product flexibility needed to effectively cover potentially difficult surfaces. When formulated with a high dry film thickness (DFT) per coat, the opportunity exists to apply one to two coats in order to provide a “safe-to-touch” surface per the recommendation of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). With the benefits provided by aerogel additives in our wide range of installed safe touch applications, it is easy to see why our ENOVA aerogel has a proven reputation as the ultimate thermal insulation coatings additive solution.

Condensation control

When surface temperatures drop below the dew point, condensation forms and moisture damage is soon to follow. Coatings loaded with our aerogel particles have the potential to dramatically change the temperature profile of the substrate they are applied to, often keeping coating surface temperature above the point where water will condense. For existing structures with sweating surfaces, or new projects where sweating will be a concern, aerogel-based coatings are providing a new option for condensation control.