The directed assembly of nanomaterials into 3D architectures is a powerful tool to produce macroscopic materials with tailored physical properties. In this presentation we will show that such a process can be easily performed for the fabrication of lightweight electrically conductive materials. Silver nanowire aerogels (AgNWAs) with very low densities (down to ~6 mg cm<sup>-3</sup>) were ice-templated and freeze-dried, leading to 3D shaped cellular materials based on one-dimensional nanoscopic building blocks. Due to their intrinsic moderate mechanical resistance, the potential use of pure AgNWAs appears rather limited. The addition of carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) in a 1:1 weight ratio leads to the fabrication of hybrid aerogels with highly improved mechanical properties, the CMC molecular weight being a key parameter. The combination of AgNWs with CMC-700k results in a gain higher than 7100 % of the Young’s modulus, from 10.4 ±0.9 kPa (at very low density i.e. 12 mg cm<sup>3</sup>) for the AgNWAs to 740 ± 40 kPa for the AgNW:CMC aerogel. Electromechanical characterizations allowed us to quantify the piezoelectric properties of these hybrid aerogels. The very good elasticity and the piezoelectric behavior stability up to 100 cycles of compression under high (50 %) deformation were revealed, which may be of interest for various applications such as pressure sensors.

From 1D silver nanowires to 3D electrically conductive and mechanically resistant lightweight aerogel architectures

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ACS Spring 2023

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