Flexible composite aerogel and process for producing same

A flexible composite organic aerogel, comprising:

• a textile reinforcement;
• and
• an organic aerogel placed within the textile reinforcement,
• wherein:
• the organic aerogel is based on a resin resulting at least in part from at least one polyhydroxybenzene R and at least one formaldehyde F;
• and
• the organic aerogel is:
• (i) a polymeric organic gel comprising at least one water-soluble cationic polyelectrolyte P, or
• (ii) the organic aerogel is a pyrolysate of the polymeric organic gel in the form of a porous carbon monolith comprising a product of pyrolysis of the at least one water-soluble cationic polyelectrolyte P,
• wherein the at least one water-soluble cationic polyelectrolyte P is an organic polymer selected from the group consisting of a quaternary ammonium salt, a poly(vinylpyridinium chloride), a polyethyleneimine, a polyvinylpyridine, a poly(allylamine hydrochloride), a poly(trimethylammonioethyl methacrylate chloride), a poly(acrylamide-co-dimethylammonium chloride) and mixtures thereof;
• and
• the organic aerogel exhibits a specific thermal conductivity of between 10 and 40 mW·m−1·K−1 at atmospheric pressure,
• wherein the flexible composite organic aerogel comprises a product of a polymerization reaction in an aqueous solvent W of the at least one polyhydroxybenzene R and the at least one formaldehyde F, in the presence of the at least one water-soluble cationic polyelectrolyte P dissolved in the aqueous solvent W and in the presence of a catalyst,
• wherein the product of the polymerization reaction comprises the at least one water-soluble cationic polyelectrolyte P in a ratio by weight according to P/(R+F) of 2% to 10%, with respect to the at least one polyhydroxybenzene R and the at least one formaldehyde F, and
• wherein the organic aerogel has a density of between 0.01 and 0.4 g/cm3.