Amy Marconnet

Solar steam generation by heat localization

Currently, steam generation using solar energy is based on heating bulk liquid to high temperatures. This approach requires either costly high optical concentrations leading to heat loss by the hot bulk liquid and heated surfaces or vacuum. New solar receiver concepts such as porous volumetric receivers or nanofluids have been proposed to decrease these losses. Here we report development of an approach and corresponding material structure for solar steam generation while maintaining low optical concentration and keeping the bulk liquid at low temperature with no vacuum. We achieve solar thermal efficiency up to 85% at only 10 kW m(-2). This high performance results from four structure characteristics: absorbing in the solar spectrum, thermally insulating, hydrophilic and interconnected pores. The structure concentrates thermal energy and fluid flow where needed for phase change and minimizes dissipated energy. This new structure provides a novel approach to harvesting solar energy for a broad range of phase-change applications.

Thermal Conduction in Aligned Carbon Nanotube–Polymer Nanocomposites with High Packing Density

Nanostructured composites containing aligned carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are very promising as interface materials for electronic systems and thermoelectric power generators. We report the first data for the thermal conductivity of densified, aligned multiwall CNT nanocomposite films for a range of CNT volume fractions. A 1 vol % CNT composite more than doubles the thermal conductivity of the base polymer. Denser arrays (17 vol % CNTs) enhance the thermal conductivity by as much as a factor of 18 and there is a nonlinear trend with CNT volume fraction. This article discusses the impact of CNT density on thermal conduction considering boundary resistances, increased defect concentrations, and the possibility of suppressed phonon modes in the CNTs.

From the Casimir Limit to Phononic Crystals: 20 Years of Phonon Transport Studies Using Silicon-on-Insulator Technology

Silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technology has sparked advances in semiconductor and MEMs manufacturing and revolutionized our ability to study phonon transport phenomena by providing single-crystal silicon layers with thickness down to a few tens of nanometers. These nearly perfect crystalline silicon layers are an ideal platform for studying ballistic phonon transport and the coupling of boundary scattering with other mechanisms, including impurities and periodic pores. Early studies showed clear evidence of the size effect on thermal conduction due to phonon boundary scattering in films down to 20 nm thick and provided the first compelling room temperature evidence for the Casimir limit at room temperature. More recent studies on ultrathin films and periodically porous thin films are exploring the possibility of phonon dispersion modifications in confined geometries and porous films. [DOI: 10.1115/1.4023577]

Thermal Cycling, Mechanical Degradation, and the Effective Figure of Merit of a Thermoelectric Module

Thermoelectric modules experience performance reduction and mechanical failure due to thermomechanical stresses induced by thermal cycling. The present study subjects a thermoelectric module to thermal cycling and evaluates the evolution of its thermoelectric performance through measurements of the thermoelectric figure of merit, ZT, and its individual components. The Seebeck coefficient and thermal conductivity are measured using steady-state infrared microscopy, and the electrical conductivity and ZT are evaluated using the Harman technique. These properties are tracked over many cycles until device failure after 45,000 thermal cycles. The mechanical failure of the TE module is analyzed using high-resolution infrared microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. A reduction in electrical conductivity is the primary mechanism of performance reduction and is likely associated with defects observed during cycling. The effective figure of merit is reduced by 20% through 40,000 cycles and drops by 97% at 45,000 cycles. These results quantify the effect of thermal cycling on a commercial TE module and provide insight into the packaging of a complete TE module for reliable operation.

Evaluating Broader Impacts of Nanoscale Thermal Transport Research

The past two decades have witnessed the emergence and rapid growth of the research field of nanoscale thermal transport. Much of the work in this field has been fundamental studies that have explored the mechanisms of heat transport in nanoscale films, wires, particles, interfaces, and channels. However, in recent years there has been an increasing emphasis on utilizing the fundamental knowledge gained toward understanding and improving device and system performances. In this opinion article, an attempt is made to provide an evaluation of the existing and potential impacts of the basic research efforts in this field on the developments of the heat transfer discipline, workforce, and a number of technologies, including heat-assisted magnetic recording, phase change memories, thermal management of microelectronics, thermoelectric energy conversion, thermal energy storage, building and vehicle heating and cooling, manufacturing, and biomedical devices. The goal is to identify successful examples, significant challenges, and potential opportunities where thermal science research in nanoscale has been or will be a game changer.

PHONON CONDUCTION IN PERIODICALLY POROUS SILICON NANOBRIDGES

Thermal conduction in periodically porous nanostructures is strongly influenced by phonon boundary scattering, although the precise magnitude of this effect remains open to investigation. This work attempts to clarify the impact of phonon-boundary scattering at room temperature using electrothermal measurements and modeling. Silicon nanobeams, prepared using electron beam lithography, were coated with a thin palladium overlayer, which serves as both a heater and thermometer for the measurement. The thermal conductivity along the length of the silicon nanobeams was measured using a steady-state Joule heating technique. The thermal conductivities of the porous nanobeams were reduced to as low as 3% of the value for bulk silicon. A Callaway-Holland model for the thermal conductivity was adapted to investigate the relative impact of boundary scattering, pore scattering, and phonon bandgap effects. Both the experimental data and the modeling showed a reduction in thermal conductivity with increasing pore diameter, although the experimentally measured value was up to an order of magnitude lower than that predicted by the model.

Thermal conductivity in porous silicon nanowire arrays

The nanoscale features in silicon nanowires (SiNWs) can suppress phonon propagation and strongly reduce their thermal conductivities compared to the bulk value. This work measures the thermal conductivity along the axial direction of SiNW arrays with varying nanowire diameters, doping concentrations, surface roughness, and internal porosities using nanosecond transient thermoreflectance. For SiNWs with diameters larger than the phonon mean free path, porosity substantially reduces the thermal conductivity, yielding thermal conductivities as low as 1 W/m/K in highly porous SiNWs. However, when the SiNW diameter is below the phonon mean free path, both the internal porosity and the diameter significantly contribute to phonon scattering and lead to reduced thermal conductivity of the SiNWs.

Viscosity and Thermal Conductivity of Stable Graphite Suspensions Near Percolation

Nanofluids have received much attention in part due to the range of properties possible with different combinations of nanoparticles and base fluids. In this work, we measure the viscosity of suspensions of graphite particles in ethylene glycol as a function of the volume fraction, shear rate, and temperature below and above the percolation threshold. We also measure and contrast the trends observed in the viscosity with increasing volume fraction to the thermal conductivity behavior of the same suspensions: above the percolation threshold, the slope that describes the rate of thermal conductivity enhancement with concentration reduces compared to below the percolation threshold, whereas that of the viscosity enhancement increases. While the thermal conductivity enhancement is independent of temperature, the viscosity changes show a strong dependence on temperature and exhibit different trends with respect to the temperature at different shear rates above the percolation threshold. Interpretation of the experimental observations is provided within the framework of Stokesian dynamics simulations of the suspension microstructure and suggests that although diffusive contributions are not important for the observed thermal conductivity enhancement, they are important for understanding the variations in the viscosity with changes of temperature and shear rate above the percolation threshold. The experimental results can be collapsed to a single master curve through calculation of a single dimensionless parameter (a Péclet number based on the rotary diffusivity of the graphite particles).

Continuous Carbon Nanotube-Based Fibers and Films for Applications Requiring Enhanced Heat Dissipation

The production of continuous carbon nanotube (CNT) fibers and films has paved the way to leverage the superior properties of individual carbon nanotubes for novel macroscale applications such as electronic cables and multifunctional composites. In this manuscript, we synthesize fibers and films from CNT aerogels that are continuously grown by floating catalyst chemical vapor deposition (FCCVD) and measure thermal conductivity and natural convective heat transfer coefficient from the fiber and film. To probe the mechanisms of heat transfer, we develop a new, robust, steady-state thermal characterization technique that enables measurement of the intrinsic fiber thermal conductivity and the convective heat transfer coefficient from the fiber to the surrounding air. The thermal conductivity of the as-prepared fiber ranges from 4.7 ± 0.3 to 28.0 ± 2.4 W m(-1) K(-1) and depends on fiber volume fraction and diameter. A simple nitric acid treatment increases the thermal conductivity by as much as a factor of ∼3 for the fibers and ∼6.7 for the thin films. These acid-treated CNT materials demonstrate specific thermal conductivities significantly higher than common metals with the same absolute thermal conductivity, which means they are comparatively lightweight, thermally conductive fibers and films. Beyond thermal conductivity, the acid treatment enhances electrical conductivity by a factor of ∼2.3. Further, the measured convective heat transfer coefficients range from 25 to 200 W m(-2) K(-1) for all fibers, which is higher than expected for macroscale materials and demonstrates the impact of the nanoscale CNT features on convective heat losses from the fibers. The measured thermal and electrical performance demonstrates the promise for using these fibers and films in macroscale applications requiring effective heat dissipation.

Solder-bonded carbon nanotube thermal interface materials

Vertically-aligned carbon nanotube (CNT) films offer an attractive combination of properties for thermal interface applications, specifically high thermal conductance and mechanical compliance. In this work, we examine the use of a solder bonding layer to attach and transfer CNT films from the silicon growth substrate onto metalized surfaces. Indium foil is considered as a bonding layer for low-temperature (<;150°C) applications while a tin-plated aluminum/nickel foil is used for high temperature applications (<;1000°C). The intrinsic thermal conductivity of the CNT film and the thermal boundary resistances between the CNT film and the surrounding materials are measured with comparative infrared microscopy before and after solder bonding. The thermal properties are measured over a range of applied compressive stress. In general, compressive stress reduces the thermal boundary resistance and improves the thermal conductivity of the CNT films. Solder bonding of the exposed (non-growth) interface reduces the thermal boundary resistance by up to a factor of 30 over a dry unbonded contact.