Hybrid carbon thermal interface materials for thermoelectric generator devices

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Energy Conversion

Background:

• Thermal interface materials (TIMs) are crucial for efficient heat transfer in electronic devices.
• Existing TIMs face challenges in high-temperature applications and performance optimization.
• Carbon-based materials offer promising thermal and mechanical properties for advanced TIMs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To fabricate and characterize novel all-carbon TIMs by hybridizing single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) with graphite.
• To evaluate the performance of these hybrid carbon TIMs in a thermoelectric generator (TEG) device.
• To investigate the effect of silane coupling agent post-treatment on TIM thermal resistance and TEG performance.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of hybrid carbon TIMs using SWCNTs and graphite.
• Characterization of TIM thermal conductivity and thermal contact resistance using a home-made calorimeter.
• Integration of TIMs into a TEG device to measure output power under varying temperature differences and applied pressures.

Main Results:

• Maximum thermal conductivity was achieved with approximately 10 wt% SWCNT content.
• The TIM exhibited a low thermal contact resistance of 2.19 × 10⁻⁴ m²K/W, which decreased with applied pressure.
• Post-treatment with a silane coupling agent reduced TIM thermal contact resistance by 30% and enhanced TEG output power by up to 18.5%.

Conclusions:

• Hybrid carbon TIMs demonstrate excellent thermal management capabilities for electronic devices.
• The developed TIMs are effective in enhancing the performance of thermoelectric generator devices.
• This study presents a viable approach for creating high-performance, carbon-based TIMs for high-temperature TEG applications.