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Heat insulating materials include asbestos, fiberglass insulation, and mineral wool. Less conventional materials include multilayer insulation, ceramic-based paints, and chemical films. Insulation can be used to keep heat away from an object or within a component to prevent damage. Asbestos, once widely used, is now limited due to health concerns. Fiberglass insulation works by trapping air, while mineral wool is used for extreme heat conditions. Ceramic-based paints and MLI are used in spacecraft and automobiles to protect against heat damage.
There are several types of heat insulating materials in use in a variety of commercial and residential applications. Some of these heat insulating materials include asbestos, fiberglass insulation and mineral wool. Less conventional materials include multilayer insulation (MLI) used on spacecraft and satellites, ceramic-based paints, and chemical films that are often wrapped around pipes and laid flat on flat surfaces.
While the typical use of insulation is to keep cold air from entering an area, many thermal insulating materials are designed to keep heat away from an object. Materials can also be used within a component so as not to damage other components within an assembly. Heat is a common enemy of many devices and as such requires special thermal insulating materials to prevent a wide range of damage from minor malfunctions to complete thermal melt and destruction.
One of the first widely used insulating materials for heat protection was asbestos. A fiber-like material, asbestos has been used in buildings, ships, and various types of machinery to protect against heat damage. Asbestos dust particles have been linked to health problems, including cancer, and the material is starting to be used in very limited applications.
Fiberglass insulation is a versatile material that has found many uses, including use as a heat insulating material. The amount of heat protection is often attributed to the thickness of the fiberglass material. The air trapped inside the numerous threads and fibers of the insulation prevents the transfer of heat from one particle to another, thus creating an effective thermal barrier. For extreme heat conditions, mineral wool in the form of mineral wool and stone wool is commonly used in areas that may come into direct contact with humans. Mineral wool is a by-product of iron ore blast furnace slag, while stone wool is a by-product of natural rocks and stones.
Some of the less conventional and more exotic heat insulating materials can be found in the space or under the hood of the family car. Ceramic-based paints and coatings are often applied to spacecraft and automobile exhaust components to protect them from heat damage. By covering a component in this liquid coating, the cured coating has the ability to both contain heat within the component and protect external heat from entering the component. Other heat insulating materials known as MLI are made up of several layers of materials bonded together and make up the gold colored material often seen on spacecraft.
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