蜜桃传媒破解版下载 鈥淔rozen Air鈥 window material wins gold in R&D 100 Green Tech Awards
RASEI Fellow Ivan Smalyukh鈥檚 transparent heat-blocking material, MOCHI, just received top honors in the R&D World鈥檚 2026 Special Recognition: Green Tech Category.听
Buildings consume roughly 40% of the energy generated worldwide, much of it being lost through windows. Insulating walls is relatively easy, but insulating glass, while keeping it clear, is not. 鈥淔inding insulators that are transparent is really challenging,鈥 explains Smalyukh.听
MOCHI, the Mesoporous Optically Clear Heat Insulator, is a silicone gel built around a dense network of air pockets that are each many times thinner than a human hair. Because the pores are so small, gas molecules trapped inside them can鈥檛 collide and transfer hear in the way they normally do, they just bounce off the walls of the pockets. This means that the material blocks heat so effectively that a 5 mm (1/5 of an inch) sheet can let you hold a flame in your palm. The material transmits 99.5% of visible light, making it clearer than most glass. MOCHI reflects just 0.2% of incoming light, avoiding cloudiness associated with traditional aerogels. The material comes in slabs or thin sheets that could apply directly to existing windows.听
Now in its 64th year, the global science and innovation competition included an international panel of judges, bringing together more than 50 industry professionals. The judges ranked MOCHI , ahead of a carbon sequestering concrete block and solar reflecting cooling paint. All three winners also placed among the 2026 R&D 100 finalists.听
This is the second major honor for the Smalyukh group鈥檚 push to develop practical transparent insulation technologies. In 2024 the team鈥檚 cellulose-based aerogel, SiCellA, earned a Guiness World Record for the most transparent material ever made.听
MOCHI is still made by hand in the lab, but the team says that the ingredients are inexpensive and the process can be streamlined. Before it can be deployed in real windows, skylights, and even vehicle windshields, manufacturing needs to be scaled up, the next milestone on the development from lab bench to commercialization.