Aerogel Conferences

The International Symposium on Aerogels

Ayers and Hunt summarize the history of the International Symposia on Aerogels:

In 1985 Professor Jochen Fricke organized the first International Symposium on Aerogels (ISA) in Wurzburg, Germany. Twenty-five papers were presented at this conference by researchers from around the world. Subsequent ISAs were held in 1988 (Montpellier, France), 1991 (Wurzburg), and 1994 (Berkeley, California, USA). The fourth ISA set an attendance record with 151 participants, 10 invited papers, 51 contributed papers, and 35 poster presentations. The fifth ISA was held in Montpellier once again with almost 200 attendees, the sixth was held in Albuquerque, NM in 2000, and the seventh took place in Washington, D.C. in 2003.

Proceedings from many of the ISA conferences were published in the Journal of Non-Crystalline Solids, particularly Volume 145 (ISA-3), Volume 186 (ISA-4), Volume 225 (ISA-5), Volume 285 (ISA-6), and Volume 350 (ISA-7).

The eighth ISA never materialized, so to speak, however in December 2007 the International Aerogels Conference, organized by Intertech Pira, was held at the Omni Parker House Hotel in Boston, MA. Although the conference attracted only a relatively small group of dedicated aerogel scientists, it also brought in a number of the companies producing aerogels commercially.

Aerogels World Summit

Intertech Pira organized the larger Aerogels World Summit in October 2008, held at the Providence Biltmore in Providence, RI. The conference attracted both scientists and companies and focused on cross-pollinating ideas between academia and industry.

The next Aerogels World Summit is expected to be held in 2010. This should be a good one!

International Sol-Gel Conference

The International Sol-Gel Conference series (abbreviated SOL-GEL YEAR), organized by the International Sol-Gel Society (ISGS), was started in 1982. The series covers all aspects of sol-gel science and technology, from sols and gels to glasses to thin films to aerogels.

SOL-GEL 2009, the 15th International Sol-Gel Conference, will be held in Porto de Galinhas, Pernambuco State, Brazil from August 23-27, 2009.

American Chemical Society

The American Chemical Society (ACS) holds two huge yearly conferences, one in Spring and one in Fall, covering all aspects of chemistry. Frequently the conference will have a track dedicated to sol-gel and, occasionally, aerogels specifically, although aerogel work can always find a place somewhere in an ACS conference.

Materials Research Society

The Materials Research Society (MRS) holds two huge yearly meetings, one in Spring that’s always in San Francisco and one in Fall that’s always in Boston. There are many tracks where aerogels can fit in at MRS and there are usually many aerogel talks and posters.