The thermal conductivity of nickel and copper dispersed in poly(vinyl chloride)

Abstract

The thermal conductivity of segregated distributions of poly (vinyl chloride)/nickel (PVC/Ni) and poly(vinyl chloride)/copper (PVC/Cu) was measured for volume fractions ranging from 0 to 0.15. The thermal conductivities increased from 0.15 Btu/hr ft °F for unmodified PVC to 2.79 Btu/hr ft °F for PVC/15 percent Cu. While the thermal conductivity increased smoothly with volume loading, the electrical resistivity decreased discontinuously over fifteen orders of magnitude. Using the parallel slab model as a basis, a semi‐empirical model was deduced which described the thermal conductivity as a function of volume loading. With this work, a survey of the thermal, electrical, and mechanical properties of segregated PVC composites is complete.