Thermal conductivity of carbon nanotubes and graphene in epoxy nanofluids and nanocomposites

Mario Martin-Gallego,Jose Maria Ortiz De Zarate,Mohamed Essalhi,Raquel Verdejo,Miguel Angel Lopez-Manchado,Mohamed Khayet

doi:10.1186/1556-276x-6-610

Abstract

We employed an easy and direct method to measure the thermal conductivity of epoxy in the liquid (nanofluid) and solid (nanocomposite) states using both rodlike and platelet-like carbon-based nanostructures. Comparing the experimental results with the theoretical model, an anomalous enhancement was obtained with multiwall carbon nanotubes, probably due to their layered structure and lowest surface resistance. Puzzling results for functionalized graphene sheet nanocomposites suggest that phonon coupling of the vibrational modes of the graphene and of the polymeric matrix plays a dominant role on the thermal conductivities of the liquid and solid states.PACS: 74.25.fc; 81.05.Qk; 81.07.Pr.

Highlights

Due to the increasing importance of energy dissipation in the electronic industry, thermal conductivity of cured epoxy resins has been widely investigated over the years
SWNTs exhibit a higher number of phonon vibrational modes and a lower defect density in relation to MWNTs, leading to a higher intrinsic K [22,23]
We employed an easy and direct method based on the hot wire technique to measure the thermal conductivity of epoxy nanofluids

Summary

Introduction

Due to the increasing importance of energy dissipation in the electronic industry, thermal conductivity of cured epoxy resins has been widely investigated over the years. One strategy to improve the thermal transport of epoxy resins has been the addition of highly conductive fillers, such as carbon-based or metallic fillers [1]. The thermal conductivity of the uncured liquid resin plays an important role to define the variables involved in the transformation process, such as time, applied heat, or cooling time, which will have a profound effect on the cross-link density and on the final properties of the system. We aimed at studying the effect of two types of carbon-based nanofillers, in particular, nanotubes and graphene sheets, on the thermal conductivity of an uncured liquid epoxy resin.

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Conclusion