This High-Tech Window Material Keeps Heat In While Letting You Look Out

Cold weather has descended on much of the U.S., with bitter temperatures affecting even states that are usually spared, such as Florida and Mississippi. It can be difficult to keep your house feeling warm when the temperature drops, especially if you live in a region that doesn't typically see extreme cold. As if heating your home isn't already expensive enough, you can lose 25% to 30% of your home's heat through your windows, depending on the type and age of them, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Even if your windows are newer and in good shape, energy can be lost through insufficient caulk or weatherstripping, installation gaps, or broken seals.

It can be an expensive proposition to replace your home's windows. Depending on what type of window you select, it can cost anywhere between $100 to more than $1,000 per window. You can add thermal curtains, but those will block out both the view and the warmth of the sun. What if there was a way to insulate your windows without compromising the scenery? Researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder may have discovered a way to do just that.

Physicists at the school announced a new material for insulating windows that they compared to bubble wrap. Unlike that protective packing material that we all love to pop, however, this new material, called Mesoporous Optically Clear Heat Insulator (MOCHI), is almost completely transparent.

Insulation film already exists for windows, but it typically blocks light and isn't the best choice if you're hoping to maintain your view. The new material, MOCHI, can be made in thin sheets that are applied to the inside of a window. It consists of a silicone gel that traps air in a system of small pores, creating tiny air bubbles that block heat. The team that created MOCHI likens it to an existing class of insulating material called aerogel, which is already widely used. Aerogel also traps pockets of air, but those bubbles are haphazardly distributed and reflect light, meaning the material is cloudy and not transparent.

To create a product that lets light through and can be used on windows, researchers mixed in a type of molecule called surfactants that cluster together in fine strands. Silicone added to the solution then sticks to those strands, and researchers can then replace those strands with air. The silicone is left encasing those tiny air-filled strands. Because the air bubbles left in the material are so small, they aren't very good at transferring energy, so they keep the heat inside the window instead of allowing it to pass through. Ultimately, MOCHI reflects only about 0.2% of incoming light.

The science is promising, but don't head to your local home improvement store just yet. So far, MOCHI is only made in the lab, and it's a time-consuming process. Researchers believe the process can be improved, however, and it's relatively inexpensive, meaning you may eventually see MOCHI on shelves.