The product consists solely of hydrophobic silicate aerogel, in form of granules with grain sizes up to 4mm. Different grain size distributions and qualities regarding optical properties are available. The use of unprocessed granules is limited. In the building sector, it is primarily used for the insulation of cavity walls. In this case, the air-filled cavity between the load-bearing wall and the façade wall will be blown out with granules by application of pressure. The use in other cavities is also possible but, to our knowledge, has not been made so far. For both applications, the leakage of dust from small openings in the cavities is a problem. However the granules can be processed to boards or used as an aggregate in an insulating plaster. Granulate of Cabot and Enersens is part of this group.

Blankets consist of a carrier non-woven, in which aerogel is embedded. During production, the liquid raw materials of the aerogel are poured into the carrier non-woven so that the aerogel is created in the non-woven. The non-woven stabilizes the aerogel mechanically, resulting in a flexible, mechanically resilient material. It is available in thicknesses of 5 and 10 mm. The blankets have a very low thermal conductivity. They can be cut, fixed with dowles, glued and bent. Therefore aerogel blankets are a very flexibly applicable material. It is suitable for a variety of construction details, e.g. for the insulation of roller shutter housing or for window reveals, but also for the insulation of ventilation pipes bringing in outside air or for hot water pipes of solar thermal systems. Due to their mechanical flexibility blankets are also suitable for the insulation of façades with external thermal insulation composite system. There is no corresponding system product, but the application at the milling building in Oberhallau has shown, that blankets can be applied successfully in this way. Aerogel blankets are available as the product Spaceloft of the company Aspen Aerogels.

Aerogel boards differ from aerogel blankets in their higher stiffness and in their larger material thickness. Boards are being produced by either bonding for multiple aerogel blankets or by compounding aerogel granulate. With the addition of glue, the thermal conductivity increases in comparison to aerogel blankets. The boards can be used as external thermal insulation composite system or for interior insulation. Depending to the system they have to be glued and doweled or only glued. In Switzerland, the commercially available aerogel products are the Heck AERO board and the Sto Aevero insulation board.

Aerogel insulating renders are manufactured by the compounding of aerogel granulate with inorganic binder systems based on lime and/or cement. Like that a thermal con-ductivity is achieved, which is slightly below those of conventional insulation blankets or boards, but which is approximately half of the size of other insulating renders. Aerogel renders are very well suited for use in the renovation of historical façades because on one hand they can replace the present render and on the hand side enable a variable application thickness, which adapts to the circumstances of the façade. In addition, the insulation around the window reveals or the beams of timber-framed houses can be made thinner, so that the appearance of the façade remains with its historical details is conserved. Currently there are two insulation renders available in Switzerland: The product Fixit 222 of Fixit as well as the product HAGATHERM Typ Aerogel of HAGA AG.

Translucent elements are composed of a hollow chamber with transparent walls, which are either made of glass or plastic. The chamber is filled with aerogel granulate. Aerogel is transparent in its monolithic form. A granulate filling on the other hand is only translucent be-cause the light is refracted between aerogel and air. Like that, light can pass through the element, but no picture of the objects behind will arise. This diffuse light enables a good illumination of rooms without a harsh shadowing or glare. Therefore translucent aerogel elements are well suited for the application in offices and industrial buildings or in sport or factory halls, both as skylights and as façade elements. At the same time they provide a very good thermal insulation in comparison to normal double or triple glazing. The product Okagel of the company Okalux is available as a translucent element in Switzerland.