MakeItFrom.com
Menu (ESC)

Graphite vs. Silica Aerogel

Graphite belongs to the non-oxide engineering ceramics classification, while silica aerogel belongs to the oxide-based engineering ceramics. There are 10 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (7, in this case) are not shown. Please note that the two materials have significantly dissimilar densities. This means that additional care is required when interpreting the data, because some material properties are based on units of mass, while others are based on units of area or volume.

For each property being compared, the top bar is graphite and the bottom bar is silica aerogel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Material Properties

Density, g/cm3 1.8
0.1
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 21
0.0050
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 6.7
0.028
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 53
57
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 2.9
0.044
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 8.7
1.4
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 18
0.016
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 6.0
0.016
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 4.9
2.0
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 12
110