Issue

Vol. 18 (2026)

Dual-Network Aerogel-Based Thermal-Safety Management System Design for Electric-Aircraft Battery Packs: Efficient Heat Management and Runaway Protection

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-026-02296-4
Jie Yang
State Key Laboratory of Fire Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, People’s Republic of China
Yueyue Xiao
State Key Laboratory of Fire Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, People’s Republic of China
Mingyuan Yan
School of Public Security and Emergency Management, Anhui University of Science and Technology, Hefei 231131, People’s Republic of China
Xu Huang
State Key Laboratory of Fire Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, People’s Republic of China
Longlong Li
State Key Laboratory of Fire Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, People’s Republic of China
Zhongxin Zhang
Institute of Advanced Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, People’s Republic of China
Xudong Cheng
State Key Laboratory of Fire Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, People’s Republic of China
Heping Zhang
State Key Laboratory of Fire Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, People’s Republic of China
Yuelei Pan
State Key Laboratory of Fire Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, People’s Republic of China

Corresponding Author: Yuelei Pan

panyl@ustc.edu.cn

Nano-Micro Letters, Vol. 18 (2026), Article Number: 447

Abstract

Electric-aircraft lithium-ion batteries, characterized by high-rate charge/discharge and high energy density, impose stringent thermal-safety requirements in confined compartments. However, conventional thermal-management or insulation strategies generally struggle to simultaneously enable efficient heat dissipation during routine operation and thermal runaway propagation (TRP) suppression under abuse conditions. Herein, a carbon aerogel–silica–alumina aerogel sheet–carbon aerogel dual-network aerogel (CA&SAAS) is fabricated through in-situ deposition and integrated supercritical drying and is further coupled with a cold plate (CP) to construct a battery thermal-safety management system (BTSMS). CA&SAAS exhibits a bulk density of 0.275 gcm⁻3 and a specific surface area of 626.37 m2g⁻1. The silica–alumina aerogel sheet (SAAS) core retains thermal conductivity of 0.0652 Wm⁻1K⁻1 at 1000 °C, while CA&SAAS exhibits a room-temperature thermal conductivity of 0.019 Wm⁻1K⁻1. During four 1C cycles, BTSMS limits Tmax/ΔTmax to 34.9/1.8 °C, reducing peak temperature and temperature nonuniformity by 46.5% and 56.1%, respectively. A predictive model shows optimized CP parameters constrain Tmax to around 45 °C at 3C. Thermal runaway tests conducted in the confined space of a full-scale aircraft cargo compartment demonstrate that the BTSMS effectively interrupts TRP in a confined three-cell module, providing a solution for the design of BTSMSs for electric-aircraft battery packs.


Highlights:
1 A sandwich dual-network aerogel (CA&SAAS) is fabricated via in situ deposition and integrated supercritical drying; the SAAS core retains a low thermal conductivity of 0.0652 Wm⁻1K⁻1 at 1000 °C.
2 Battery thermal-safety management system (BTSMS) enables efficient thermal regulation, limiting Tmax/ΔTmax to 34.9/1.8 °C at 1C, while simulations predict Tmax around 45 °C under optimized 3C operation.
3 BTSMS effectively interrupts thermal runaway propagation in a confined three-cell aircraft-module test through CA/CP-assisted heat dissipation and SAAS-enabled intercell thermal blocking.

Keywords

Dual-network aerogel High-efficiency thermal management Synergistic regulation of thermal insulation and heat dissipation Superinsulating material Thermal protection
Yang, Jie, Yueyue Xiao, Mingyuan Yan, Xu Huang, Longlong Li, Zhongxin Zhang, Xudong Cheng, Heping Zhang, and Yuelei Pan. 2026. “Dual-Network Aerogel-Based Thermal-Safety Management System Design for Electric-Aircraft Battery Packs: Efficient Heat Management and Runaway Protection”. Nano-Micro Letters 18 (July):447. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-026-02296-4.
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