Abstract:

Significance Advanced fiber materials used for improving human thermal management offer a wide range of choices and effective solutions to enhance human thermal comfort. Aerogel fibers， as a novel type of material that combines the ultralow density and ultralow thermal conductivity with fiber flexibility， offer remarkable advantages in light weight and superior thermal insulation performance. They can also meet high-performance requirements in diverse fields such as extreme environment protection， wearable sensing， and intelligent thermal management. Their emergence breaks through the performance bottlenecks of traditional fiber materials in insulation and protection， driving the development of textiles toward high performance and lightweight， and holding significant importance for material technology advancement and industrial transformation.

Progress Aerogel fibers， as a new generation of high-performance thermal insulation materials， demonstrate broad application potential across various industries. In recent years， significant progress has been made in their development， with production techniques evolving from early confined spinning methods to wet spinning， freeze spinning， and now to advanced processes such as jet spinning and centrifugal spinning， reflecting continuous improvements in technology. At the same time， the mechanical properties of aerogel fibers have steadily increased， with strength rising from a few megapascals to several tens of megapascals， enabling them to be woven into fabrics and exhibiting substantial enhancements in both structure and performance. Regarding composition， the raw materials for aerogels have diversified from initial inorganic substances like graphene and silica to high-performance polymers such as aramid and polyimide， enriching the material’s versatility. Functionally， the application scope of aerogel fibers has expanded to include electromagnetic shielding， infrared stealth， thermal insulation， and wearable sensing， and is currently extending into emerging fields like biological hemostasis. Driven by breakthroughs in nanotechnology， the emergence of novel nanomaterials， and innovations in manufacturing processes， the field of aerogel fibers is experiencing a flourishing stage of development. It is expected to achieve steady advancements alongside progress in materials and fabrication technologies. Undoubtedly， interdisciplinary collaboration among materials science， chemistry， fluid mechanics， textile engineering， and artificial intelligence will be essential for the future development of aerogel fibers.

Conclusion and prospect Aerogel fibers， combining ultralight weight， high porosity， low thermal conductivity， and mechanical flexibility， represent a rapidly emerging class of high-performance materials with significant potential in thermal management， protective systems， flexible electronics， and smart sensing. Their integration of aerogel-like thermal insulation with fiber processability opens new possibilities for advanced energy， environmental， and aerospace applications. However， the field is still in its early stage， and multiple theoretical and technical challenges must be addressed to achieve large-scale adoption. At present， the major constraints lie in the cost-effective synthesis of spinning precursors， optimization of spinning processes and equipment， and precise tailoring of fiber microstructures. Incorporating functional nanomaterials offers a promising pathway to enhance structural integrity， modulate porosity， and impart multifunctionality. Yet， achieving precise nano structural control， scaling laboratory fabrication to industrial production， reducing environmental impacts of solvents and chemicals， and managing the cost of raw nanomaterials remain formidable obstacles. Future research should focus on developing efficient， low-cost， and con

Key words: aerogel fiber, sol-gel transition mechanism, spinning method, thermal management, intelligent textiles