Improving thermal conductivity in the through-thickness direction of carbon fibre/SiC composites by growing vertically aligned carbon nanotubes. (May 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Chen, Songchao; Feng, Yiyu; Qin, Mengmeng; Ji, Tengxiao; Feng, Wei
• Is Part Of: Carbon. Volume 116(2017)
• Page Start: 84
• Page End: 93
• Publication Date: 2017-05
• Subjects: Carbon -- Periodicals; Carbone -- Périodiques; Koolstof; Toepassingen; Electronic journals; 546.681
• DOI: 10.1016/j.carbon.2017.01.103
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0008-6223

Abstract

Abstract: Combining heat transfer and high-temperature heat resistance is very important for realising thermal management in harsh environments. Achieving high heat conduction in the through-thickness direction (k⊥ ) is challenging for carbon fibre (CF) reinforced SiC matrix composite (CF/SiC) based heat resistant materials due to their anisotropic structures and weak bonding between the CF and the matrix. We present a three-dimensional (3-D) hierarchical vertically aligned carbon nanotubes (VACNTs)-CF hybrid by growing VACNTs on the surface of CF fabric. The SiO2 coating enables the strong deposition of the catalyst, facilitating high-density growth of VACNT. The VACNT-CF reinforced SiC composite is prepared by stacking VACNT-CF following by precursor infiltration and pyrolysis process. The VACNT forest not only enables strong interfacial bonding between the CF and the matrix but also greatly improve the k⊥ due to the good interfacial compatibility. The VACNT-CF/SiC composite exhibits k⊥ of 16.80 W/(m K), which is higher than that of the CF/SiC (7.94 W/(m K)), due to highly thermally conductive pathways in the dense structure. The VACNT-CF/SiC composite also conducts heat rapidly in the through-thickness direction. The VACNT-CF/SiC composite with high thermal conductivity, high strength and high oxidation resistance can be used for heat dissipation and resistance by optimising the microstructure. Graphical abstract: