A high-performance thermal conductive and outstanding electrical insulating composite based on robust neuron-like microstructure

• Published in: Chemical engineering journal (Lausanne, Switzerland : 1996) Switzerland : 1996), 2021-12, Vol.426, p.131280, Article 131280
• Main Authors: Gao, Yueyang, Zhang, Minghang, Chen, Xinran, Zhu, Yanji, Wang, Huaiyuan, Yuan, Sicheng, Xu, Fei, Cui, Yexiang, Bao, Di, Shen, Xiaosong, Sun, Yue, Peng, Jianwen, Zhou, Yixi, Zhang, Meng
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Boron nitride; Neuron-like microstructure; Polymer based composites; Thermal conductivity; Thermal management
• ISSN: 1385-8947; 1873-3212
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cej.2021.131280

[Display omitted] •The unique neuron-like microstructure was constructed through a facile method.•The obtained composite exhibited a high thermal conductivity of 12.13 W m−1 K−1.•The heat-transfer capability was investigated through Finite Element Simulation.•The composite showed prominent application performance in the chip cooling module. Owing to the rapid development of highly integrated electronic devices, research on reliable and efficient Thermal interface materials (TIMs) has promising prospects. Boron nitride (BN) is regarded as an excellent functional filler due to its high in-plane thermal conductivity and low cost. However, the fabrication of highly thermally conductive polymer-based composites with multifunctional properties remains challenging. Presented here is an efficient and scalable technique to realize the robust neuron-like microstructure network with oriented BN platelets formed in Polyethersulfone (PES) and Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) based composites. The neuron-like microstructure, with well-developed synapses, guarantee effective thermal pathways and robust interface interaction under complex conditions. The oriented BN layer in the composite ensures a high thermal conductivity of 12.13 W m−1 K−1, indicating a thermal enhancement efficiency of 156.6% per 1 vol% filler compared to the polymer-based matrix. Combined with outstanding electrical resistivity over 1015 Ω·cm and superior usage stability over 120 °C, the composite also exhibits superior performance in application tests in the mobile communication system and laptop chip cooling module making it promising in the intelligent robot industry and advanced electronic packaging field.