Abstract
Due to an easy sintering stage, composite aerogels offer an alternative way to synthesize silica glass at temperatures ranging from 900 to 1200 °C, close to half the temperatures used for the glass melting process. The heat treatment is tailored to obtain fully densified or porous glasses. In this study, the kinetics of dimensional shrinkage were characterized during the sintering mechanism, and we confirmed that the viscous flow-sintering model also applies to composite aerogels. Porous glasses with a broad range of porosity and physical properties (mechanical strength, elasticity modulus, permeability) have been synthesized. The synthesis of glass-ceramics from these open pore structures is explored.