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ISSN Online: 2377-424X

ISBN Print: 978-1-56700-421-2

International Heat Transfer Conference 15
August, 10-15, 2014, Kyoto, Japan

Intriguingly High Thermal Conductivity Enhancement of Graphene Nanoplatelets Contained Poly(methylmethacrylate) Composites

Get access (open in a dialog) DOI: 10.1615/IHTC15.tpp.008646
pages 8803-8809

Abstract

Graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) are two-dimensional planar nanocarbon material. They are currently being studied for applications in a variety of areas, such as energy-storage materials, free-standing paper-like materials, polymer composites, liquid crystal devices and thermal interface materials (TIMs). Due to high thermal conductivity, GNPs are considered as very promising nanofiller for improving thermal conductivity of conventional polymer. This study focuses on the investigation of the thermal conductivity of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) matrix composites containing GNPs via mechanical stirring and ultrasonic auxiliary solution blend method. When the volume content of fillers is 20%, the room-temperature thermal conductivity of graphite-PMMA, expanded graphite-PMMA and GNPs-PMMA are 0.46, 0.51 and 3.41 W/mK, respectively, and increase by 84%, 104% and 1264% versus pure PMMA (0.25 W/mK). The thermal conductivity of 20vol.% GNPs-PMMA composite is about 7 times higher than graphite and expanded graphite as fillers. Thermal conductivity improvement ratios (Ke,/sub> /Km) of GNPs-PMMA composites rise nearly linearly (the slope K was 0.66) with loading of GNPs. The appearance and dimension of GNPs are observed via TEM, SEM and AFM. The thin sheet-like structure of GNPs have high rate of light transmittance, an average thickness of 1.13nm and two dimensional size of about 1.19μm, confirming that the extraordinary high aspect ratio is in favor of heat transfer performance in PMMA composites.