Carbon foams for thermal management

A unique process for the fabrication of high-thermal-conductivity carbon foam was developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). This process does not require the traditional blowing and stabilization steps and therefore is less costly. The resulting foam can have density values of between 0.2 and 0.6 g/cc and can develop a bulk thermal conductivity of between 40 and 180 W/m K. Because of its low density, its high thermal conductivity, its relatively high surface area, and its open-celled structure, the ORNL carbon foam is an ideal material for thermal management applications. Initial studies have shown the overall heat transfer coefficients of carbon foam-based heat sinks to be up to two orders of magnitude greater than those of conventional heat sinks.