Extremely high thermal conductivity anisotropy of double-walled carbon nanotubes

Based on molecular dynamics simulations, we reveal that double-walled carbon nanotubes can possess an extremely high anisotropy ratio of radial to axial thermal conductivities. The mechanism is basically the same as that for the high thermal conductivity anisotropy of graphene layers - the in-plane...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:AIP advances 2017-06, Vol.7 (6), p.065104-065104-8
Main Authors: Ma, Zhaoji, Guo, Zhengrong, Zhang, Hongwei, Chang, Tienchong
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anisotropy
Bonding strength
Carbon
Carbon nanotubes
Graphene
Heat conductivity
Heat transfer
Interlayers
Molecular dynamics
Nanotubes
Thermal conductivity
Thermal management
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Summary:Based on molecular dynamics simulations, we reveal that double-walled carbon nanotubes can possess an extremely high anisotropy ratio of radial to axial thermal conductivities. The mechanism is basically the same as that for the high thermal conductivity anisotropy of graphene layers - the in-plane strong sp2 bonds lead to a very high intralayer thermal conductivity while the weak van der Waals interactions to a very low interlayer thermal conductivity. However, different from flat graphene layers, the tubular structures of carbon nanotubes result in a diameter dependent thermal conductivity. The smaller the diameter, the larger the axial thermal conductivity but the smaller the radial thermal conductivity. As a result, a DWCNT with a small diameter may have an anisotropy ratio of thermal conductivity significantly higher than that for graphene layers. The extremely high thermal conductivity anisotropy allows DWCNTs to be a promising candidate for thermal management materials.
ISSN:2158-3226
2158-3226
DOI:10.1063/1.4985269