Journal of Materials Science, Vol.51, No.7, 3463-3480, 2016
Through-thickness thermal conduction in glass fiber polymer-matrix composites and its enhancement by composite modification
Continuous glass fiber polymer-matrix composites are electrically insulating and used for printed wiring boards, but their thermal conductivity needs to be increased without sacrificing the electrical insulation ability. The through-thickness thermal conductivity of these epoxy-matrix composite laminates with in-plane fibers is found to be effectively modeled using the Rule of Mixtures with fibers and matrix mainly in parallel in the through-thickness direction, in contrast to the series model that is effective for previously studied carbon fiber composites. For the glass fiber composites, the through-thickness conductivity is similar to the in-plane conductivity. The conductivity for woven fiber composites is increased by up to 80 % by curing pressure increase (from 0.69 to 4.0 MPa), up to 50 % by solvent (toluene or ethanol) treatment of the prepreg for partial surface resin removal, and up to 90 % by boron nitride nanotube (BNNT) incorporation along with solvent treatment. The highest through-thickness thermal conductivity reached is 1.2 W/(m K), which is higher than those of all prior reports on glass fiber composites. The interlaminar interfaces are negligible in through-thickness thermal resistance compared to the laminae, as for previously studied carbon fiber composites. The fiber contribution dominates the lamina resistance. The fiber-fiber interface contribution to the lamina resistance decreases significantly with curing pressure increase or composite modification involving BNNT incorporation or solvent treatment of the prepreg.