High-strength polyurethane-reinforced glass fiber spacer fabric for cost-effective, lightweight, and high-temperature insulation applications

Compared to dense glass fiber textiles, 3D spacer inorganic glass fiber fabrics offer significant advantages in terms of lightweight design, superior thermal insulation, and high-temperature resistance. However, intricate weaving process, high manufacturing costs, and limited strength of spacer fabrics pose significant challenges to their broader application. Herein, a polyurethane foam-reinforced glass fiber spacer fabric (GSFP) was developed to address these issues. An efficient fabrication strategy, encompassing glass fiber preparation, weaving, and structural refinement, was first developed to fabricate spacer glass fabrics with thicknesses ranging from 4 to 12 cm. Subsequently, the spacer glass fabric structure was resin reinforced using a hand lay-up technique and the infusion of hollow glass microsphere-reinforced polyurethane foam. With a 10 % microsphere concentration, polyurethane foam achieved an optimal balance between mechanical strength and thermal insulation. GSFP demonstrated a 7.1 % enhancement in mechanical performance and an 18 % improvement in thermal insulation properties. After five compression cycles, GSFP embedded with 10 % glass microspheres retained 85 % of its compressive strength. With its light weight, superior strength, thermal insulation, GSFP holds promise for sustained use in high-pressure and high-temperature environments.