DESIGN AND FABRICATION OF A SIMPLIFED TEST

RIG FOR THERMAL CHARACTERIZATION OF

POLYMER COMPOSITES
A DESIGN AND FABRICATION PROJECT REPORT
Submitted by

NIKHIL ANTO V

312212114070

M SANDEEPAK

312212114090

S SANTHOSH MANIKANDAN

312212114091

VETRIVEL S

31221211411

in partial fulfillment for the award of degree of

BACHELOR OF ENGINEERING
in
MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
SSN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING, KALAVAKKAM-603110.

ANNA UNIVERSITY: CHENNAI 600 025

APRIL 2014

ANNA UNIVERSITY: CHENNAI 600 025

BONAFIDE CERTIFICATE
Certified that this project report DESIGN AND FABRICATION OF A SIMPLIFED
TEST

RIG

FOR

THERMAL

CHARACTERIZATION

OF

POLYMER

COMPOSITES is the bonafide work of NIKHIL ANTO V, M SANDEEPAK, S

SANTHOSH MANIKANDAN and VETRIVEL S

who carried out the project work

under my supervision

SIGNATURE

SIGNATURE

Dr. V.E. ANNAMALAI

Dr. K RAJKUMAR

HEAD OF THE DEPARTMENT

SUPERVISOR

Mechanical Engineering

Mechanical Engineering

SSN College Of Engineering,

SSN College Of Engineering,

OMR, Kalavakkam- 603110.

OMR, Kalavakkam- 603110.

SUBMITTED FOR THE VIVA VOCE EXAM HELD ON:

INTERNAL EXAMINER

EXTERNAL EXAMINER

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the Principal and Management of SSNCE
for their constant encouragement in all of our academic pursuits.
We also wish to express our gratitude to our Head of the Department, Dr.V.E
ANNAMALAI, Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, for his unwavering
support and motivation.
We are grateful to our guide Dr. K. RAJKUMAR Associate Professor, Department of
Mechanical Engineering, for guiding us during this project.

We also would like to thank DR. A.S. RAMANA for proving us with the NI USB - 9162
DAQ System and Lab View 2013 software for carrying out our experiments.

We would like to thank Mr.Nagaraj, Mr.Nandakumar, Mr.Ponmuthu and all other lab
technicians for their constant help and support.

ABSTRACT

In todays day when we are pushing the boundaries of whats possible through cutting
edge engineering, it typically starts with the synthesis of new materials to allow this. One
such type of material is the Thermal interface material (TIM) made of polymer matrix
composites (PMC) in order to keep up with future trends of extreme portability and
flexibility in electronic devices. A major challenge with these materials is the dependable
and accurate prediction of thermal properties most importantly thermal conductivity, which
is an empirical measure of the materials ability to conduct heat. The aim of this project is to
meet this challenge by developing a simple and reliable test rig.
The test rig has two heaters and two reference plates. The material whose thermal
conductivity has to be determined is sandwiched between the two reference plates. On
heating, steady state is reached and temperatures at each surface are measured to determine
the thermal conductivity of the material using Fourier Law of Heat Conduction. The
temperature was measured using National Instruments NI USB - 9162 DAQ System and Lab
View 2013 software.

iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER NO

TITLE

PAGE

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

iii

ABSTRACT

iv

LIST OF TABLES

viii

LIST OF FIGURES

viii

LIST OF SYMBOLS

INTRODUCTION

1.1

PROJECT SYNOPSIS

1.2

PROBLEM STATEMENT

1.3

PROJECTS SCOPE

1.4

NEED FOR THERMAL INTERFACE

1.

MATERIALS

1.5

SOME COMMON THERMAL

INTERFACE MATERIALS
1.6

THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY
v

1.7

THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY

MEASUREMENT
1.7.1 WORKING
1.7.2 SOME COMMON METHODS USED

1.8

FLOWCHART

11

1.9

OBJECTIVE OF THE FABRICATION

11

DESIGN CALCULATIONS

2.
2.1

NUMERICAL ANALYSIS

2.2

DESIGN APPROACH
2.2.1 FACTORS TO BE CONSIDERED

2.3

12

12

THERMAL DESIGN: DEVELOPMENT

AND ANALYSIS OBJECTIVE OF

13

FABRICATION
2.3.1 DETERMINATION OF PLATE DIMENSIONS

2.3.2 DETERMINATION OF HEATER INPUT 15

2.3.3 REFINEMENT OF THE DESIGN
vi

17

14

2.4

FINAL DESIGN

20

23
CAD MODELING
3.1

CAD MODEL OF THE ALUMINIUM

PLATE

24

3.2

WOODEN CHAMBER

25

FABRICATION OF THERMAL ANALYZER

25

EXPRIMENTAL SETUP OF WODDEN

28

4
4.1

CHAMBER
4.2

EXPERIMENTAL SETUP OF COMPONENTS

TO BE STACKED

29

4.3

EXPRIMENTAL SETUP OF THERMOCOUPLE 31

4.4

EXPRIMENTAL SETUP OF INSULATION

31

MATERIAL

32
EXPERIMENTAL TRIAL
5.1

PROCEDURE FOLLOWED

5.2

USING LABVIEW NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS 33

5.3

TABULATION

34

5.4

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

35

CONCLUSIONS

36

REFRENCES

37
vii

32

LIST OF TABLES
Table 1.1

Order of Precedence

Table 3.1

Model Dimensions

21

Table 5.1

Temperature across the different

Interfaces

10

LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1

Thermal Interface Material

Working
Figure 2

Typical thermal Interface

Application

Figure 3

Thermal Grease

Figure 4

Thermal Pads

Figure 5

Four Probe technique Apparatus

Figure 6

Guarded Heat Flow method

Apparatus

10

Figure 7

Setup for the parametric study

15

Figure 8

Parametric study results for

Heat Flux

16

viii

Figure 9

Temperature distribution of

17

15cm plate

Figure 10

Figure 11

Figure 12

Variation of the lateral heat flux

along Z-Direction

18

Variation of resultant heat flux

along model length

18

Temperature Distribution along the

18

length of the specimen for different

heater inputs

Figure 13

Numerical study

20

Figure 14

Heat Flux distribution of

21

Sample without box

Figure 15

Temperature distribution
of sample without box

Figure 16

21

Setup of test rig with box and

Insulation

21

Figure 17

Heat flux distribution with insulation

21

Figure 18

Temperature distribution with insulation 22

Figure 19

Heat flux variation with test

specimen length
ix

22

Figure 20

Final Design

23

Figure 21

Dimmer stat for temperature

Regulation

28

Figure 22

Aluminum Reference sample

28

Figure 23

Test specimen

29

Figure 24

Flat Plate Heater

29

Figure 25

Glass Wool and Rubber

30

Figure 26

Final setup for Experimentation

32

Figure 27

LAB VIEW SOFTWARE USED

FOR PLOTTING THE
TEMPERATURE GRADIENT

33

LIST OF SYMBOLS, ABBREVIATIONS AND NOMENCLATURE

Q

Heat (W)

Density (Kg/m3)

Acceleration due to gravity (m/s2)

heat flow (or power) in Watts

length of heat path (i.e., interface thickness) in meters

area in meters
Temperature difference across the interface, in degree C
Is the heat flow per unit time, W

is the thermal conductivity of the material

is the cross sectional area normal to the direction of the heat flow
Is the local heat flux density, Wm2

is the material's conductivity, Wm1K1,

Is the temperature gradient, Km1.
Effective thermal conductivity of TIM
Thermal conductivity of particulate
Thermal conductivity of matrix

Volume fraction
Specific heat capacity at constant pressure
Thickness of the heat conducting medium

xi

CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
Thermal conductivity is the property of a material that determines its ability to conduct heat.
For materials used in heat transfer and insulation applications, determination of thermal
conductivity is very important. Higher the value of thermal conductivity higher the heat flow
rate across the material. A material with high thermal conductivity can be used as a heat sink
on the other hand material with low thermal conductivity is used as an insulator.

1.1 PROJECT SYNOPSIS

This project involves the development and analysis of a Thermal Conductivity Test Rig to
make to determine the thermal conductivity of Thin Film Polymer Matrix Composite and
also to take into account factors such as durability, convenience in setting up the test rig and
also reliability. The novelty of the project lies in the focus on the ability to characterize
Polymer Matrix composites with a particulate dispersed phase.

1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT

The operation of integrated circuits (IC) for prolonged periods at demanding performance
levels can cause elevated temperature. This is a major cause of failures in electronic devices
and a critical problem in developing electronic packages that are capable of higher
performance. One such example is the electronic control unit (ECU) in modern automobiles.
These microcontrollers are often exposed to very demanding thermal loads due to their close
proximity to the engine.
Also, the next generation automotive ECU will have an increased processing capacity due to
greater efficiency and pollution norms. This spike in performance translates into a greater
amount of heat generation in the package. Thus there is an urgent need to efficiently
dissipate the heat. This is because the life expectancy of electronic components reduces
exponentially as the operating temperature rises. Thermal interface materials (TIMs) need to
be applied between contact surfaces to enhance heat conduction to the outside heat sink

Fig 1 The PCB and heat sink being mated together consist of mixture of surface roughness and surface
non-flatness resulting in the interface area being separated by air filled gaps. As air is not a good thermal
conductor (0.026 W/mK at room temperature), TIMs owing to their inherent thermal conductivity are
employed to fill interstitial air space thereby increases heat dissipation from the ECU

In the research and development of PMCs that suit the needs demanded by various thermal
management applications, it is important to accurately measure the effective thermal
conductivity (keff) of the composites. However, this is not a trivial task.
Although a number of methods and ASTM standards have been developed to address this,
commercially available thermal conductivity analyzers either have very narrow measurement
ranges or are restricted to homogeneous materials.
In addition to the experimental studies, various numerical and theoretical models have been
developed by various researchers to predict the thermal conductivity of composites . For
numerical models, four of the most commonly used methods are Nielsen Model [1], effective
unit cell model [2], Agaris semi-empirical model [3], and percolation model [4]. They have
enjoyed varying amounts of success in predicting the effective thermal conductivity of these
materials.

1.3 PROJECTS SCOPE

Usually the set up used for thermal conductivity measurements are quite sophisticated in
their setup also there is no theoretical framework to account for and satisfactorily explain the
thermal properties of heterogeneous materials especially thin film PMCs. Current
technologies generally focus on thermal characterization of homogeneous materials. By this
project, the Analyzer is to be designed and fabricated in a smaller scale with the dimension
of 30cm x 30cm x 30cm which makes their handling easier.

1.4 NEED FOR THERMAL INTERFACE MATERIALS

Proper and effective thermal management and heat dissipation for electronic devices from
computers to LED lighting to solar panels are critical for its performance and reliability [5].
TIM are those which are useful for establishing an effective thermal path between a heatgenerating component (e.g., a transistor) and a heat-sink attached to it
Heat-Sink (T2)

Interface Material
Component (T1)

Fig 2 Typical thermal interface application: providing a thermal path between a hot
component and a heat sink.
As a result, advanced thermally conductive materials have drawn extensive interests from
researchers and manufacturers of electronic components. These materials can be subdivided
into five main categories: (i) Monolithic Carbonaceous Materials (ii) Metal Matrix
Composites (iii) CarbonCarbon Composites (iv) Ceramic Matrix Composites [6] and (v)
Polymer Matrix Composites (PMCs) [6, 1114].

The ideal TIM would have the following characteristics:

IDEAL

PROPERTY

VALUE\CONDITION

THERMAL

HIGH

CONDUCTIVITY
THICKNESS

MINIMUM

INTERFACE LEAKAGE

MINIMAL\NIL

PERFORMANCE

LIFELONG

TOXICITY

NON-TOXIC

TABLE 1.1 IDEAL TIM

1.5 SOME COMMON THERMAL INTERFACE MATERIALS

Thermal grease is composed of a thermally conductive ller dispersed in silicone or a
hydrocarbon oil to form a paste [7].

Fig 3 Thermal Grease

Advantages: Thermal grease exhibits high thermal performance at small contact pressures
[8]. These materials are attractive on the basis of their ability to ll the interstices and
eliminate the interstitial air with a material whose thermal conductivity is much higher than
that of air
4

Disadvantages: Thermal greases are not manufacturing friendly in that they are messy and
difficult to apply and remove. They dont provide electrical insulation between contacting
surfaces. Grease joints can dry out with time, resulting in increased thermal resistance

PCMs are made of a mixture of suspended particles of high thermal conductivity, such as
ne particles of a metal oxide and a base material The base material can be a natural
material such as fully rened parafn, a polymer, a co-polymer, or a combination of all of
these. PCMs can be supplied in the form of compound only, or in composite form in a
specied thickness applied to a substrate

Advantages: PCMs typically have high published thermal performance at moderate contact
pressures .When the joint becomes thin, the viscosity prevents pump out from mechanical
exure of the interface surfaces

Disadvantages: Use of this material requires moderate compressive force to bring the
surfaces together and cause the TIM to ow. Intel also states that the strong adhesive bond
formed by PCMs between the CPU package and heat sink may cause damage to the
motherboard and CPU [9]

Thermal Pads Also, referred to as elastomeric pads, these materials are usually in form of a
pad. Pads typically consist of a filled elastomer, with materials such as ceramic or boron

Fig 4 Thermal Pads

Advantages: Thermal pads can offer good thermal performance without the mess associated
with thermal grease, handling of these materials is much easier than thermal grease. Hence,
5

saves time by speeding up the assembly process. Thermal pads can also act as a vibration
damper and protect the electronic components mounted on the PCB.

Disadvantages: In order to avoid significant degradation with the application of small

pressure to maintain good conformity at the interface, its uses has been limited to low power
devices like chip sets [10]. The main disadvantage of thermal pad remains its high thermal
resistance in the range of 13 Kcm2/W [11].

Gels These are the fourth class of TIMs widely available in the market. Gels typically consist
of thermally conductive fillers (metal or ceramic particle) and silicone polymer with low
cross-link density. Silicone is usually employed as the base because of its unique properties
including low modulus of elasticity, wetting characteristics and good thermal stability

Advantages: According to a test result in Ref. [12], while traditional thermal pads require
100300 psi to provide minimum thermal resistance, gel-based products typically need less
than 20 psi for full substrate conformation. In addition, like grease, gels offer good wetting,
can surround irregular shapes and stick onto intricate surface features.

1.6 THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY

Thermal conductivity is the physical property of the material denoting the ease with a
particular substance can accomplish the transmission of thermal energy by molecular motion.
Thermal conductivity of a material depends on the chemical composition of the substance or
substances of which it is composed, the phase (i.e. gas, liquid or solid) in which it exists, its
crystalline structure of a solid, the temperature and pressure to which it is subjected. It also
depends on whether the material is homogeneous or not. At ordinary temperature all solids
store thermal energy as vibratory motion of their atoms and potential energy in the bonding
between atoms. Therefore the thermal conductivity is related to the heat capacity.
Thermal conductivity, which is the measure of a materials ability to transport heat energy, is
an intrinsic property of any material.

It is defined as the quantity of heat energy transmitted per unit distance per unit temperature
change over that distance in the direction of heat transfer. It is highly dependent on the
chemical composition, physical structure, and state of the material. It is important to
remember that thermal conductivity is a material (i.e., bulk or intrinsic) property and
does not depend on the geometry of the test assembly

For the case of one-dimensional heat-flow (which is assumed to prevail for the purposes of
this document), thermal conductivity (k) is defined as follows (Fouriers Law )

k=

Where,
q = heat flow (or power) in Watts
t = length of heat path (i.e., interface thickness) in meters
A = area in meters
= temperature difference across the interface, in degree C
(Thermal conductivity is often expressed in reduced units of W/mK or Watts
per meter-Kelvin)

Thermal conductivity of a thermal interface adhesive or compound is commonly used

as a gauge of how good it may be in helping to dissipate heat from a device

There are many materials available which exhibits high value of thermal conductivity
(metals like Copper, Aluminum etc.).But the requirement for a good thermal conductivity
material is not just higher thermal conductivity value but also a lower CTE (Coefficient of
thermal expansion) value. For example copper has an excellent thermal conductivity value
but its CTE value is very high. For applications which require thermal conductivity and
electrical insulation metals cannot be used

1.7 THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY MEASUREMENT

Two general classifications of thermal conductivity measurement methods were reported in

literature: (i) steady-state and (ii) transient state methods. In either case the measurement
may be absolute or comparative. The difference in thermal conductivity values for absolute
or comparative cases is because comparative methods require the property of another
material in the calculation of a test sample thermal conductivity, typically a distinct
disadvantage
The current system design has been adapted from ASTM E 1225. As a way to simplify the
design and operation of the system, it uses a unique radioactive heat sink to conduct heat
away from the sample column. A finite element analysis was performed on the measurement
system to analyze the associated error for various operating conditions. Optimal operational
conditions have been discovered through this analysis and results are presented

1.7.1 WORKING

Because of its importance in characterizing material performance in nearly any engineering

and/or scientific application, a vast amount of measurement methods and variations of those
methods have been developed
A test specimen is crammed under load flanked by two reference materials; each is bounded
by longitudinal guard cylinder. This results in production of temperature gradient along with
the stack as well as longitudinal heat flows as consequences of temperature gradient in the
guard cylinder to that in specimen stack. Therefore, the thermal conductivity is measured by
recording the difference in temperature across the reference and test specimen. It has several
advantages which pursue as: Versatile
Simple in implementation
Adaptable

It is also known as the workhorse of the thermal conductivity field and can be utilized to
measure homogenous and heterogeneous composite solids. The measurement of thermal
conductivity and thermal diffusivity could be classified into two categories: steady-state and
unsteady-state. For steady-state method, macroscopic steady temperature gradient of the
sample is required to be established first before any measurement is initiated.

1.7.2 SOME COMMON METHODS USED

Some examples of steady-state method include the Comparative Method [1,2] where a test
specimen is sandwiched under load between two reference materials, each in contact with the
flat plate of a heating/cooling unit, and the whole stack is surrounded by a longitudinal guard
cylinder. Comparative method works for all solids with measurements over a temperature
range of 100-1300K

The Four Probe technique [3-5] measures thermal conductivity via electric resistivity. A
direct current is passed through a cylindrical sample and its electric resistivity is determined
by measuring the voltage drop between two probes positioned at a fixed distance. All these
values have to be measured with high accuracy. Setbacks include systematic errors arising
from determination of the voltage drop because of thermoelectric voltage between the
sample and the electrodes. This method generally tests metals and metallic alloys.

Fig 5 Four Probe technique Apparatus

The Guarded Heat Flow method [6-8] utilizes a heat flux transducer together with
reference materials as calibration artifacts. However, it is specifically designed for measuring
specimens having thermal resistances in the range 0.2-20 W/m*K, and in particular hard
solids, using smaller test specimens in the range 30 mm to 50 mm diameter and 1 mm to 30
mm thick depending on the thermal conductivity

Fig 6 Guarded Heat Flow method Apparatus

10

1.8 FLOWCHART

Table 1.2 Order of Precedence

1.9 OBJECTIVE OF THE FABRICATION

The objective for this project is:

1. To fabricate a Thermal conductivity Analyzer to measure the conductivity and
diffusivity of a thin film Polymer Matrix Composite which is to be used as a TIM
(Temperature Interface Material)
2. To perform a Thermal Study on the Analyzer to plot the temperature gradient at
different points and to validate the analytical value

11

CHAPTER 2

2. DESIGN CALCULATIONS
2.1 NUMERICAL ANALYSIS
In order to keep up with the times and also to take advantage of the enormous computing
power available to every individual in the form of personal computers (PC), numerical
analysis was chosen to be the tool of choice to carry out the design and analysis process of
the project.
To start off, a simple design was considered to accomplish the required experimental task.
Analysis was carried out on this design and the results obtained were utilized to further
enhance the design.
Obtained results are presented in the form of temperature distribution plots and graphs. But
special attention must be draw to the lateral heat flux distributions as it is of vital importance
that it is minimized in the current apparatus.

Design and analysis tool: SOLIDWORKS 2015

Numerical investigations were employed to provide a more realistic representation of the
heat transfer, and additionally, the results are presented graphically. The software
SOLIWORKS 2015 has been used for designing the test rig as well as for doing simulations
to generate data for numerical calculations. Solidworks can model and analyze a wide variety
of scientific and engineering problems such as fluid dynamics, electromagnetics, and heat
transfer. A combination of Fluid dynamics and heat transport has been implemented for the
simulations in this project. When solving models Solidworks uses the Finite Element Method
(FEM) and it runs the finite element analysis together with adaptive meshing and error
control using a variety of numerical solvers.
The Heat Transfer Module in Solidworks has been implemented to all the models to be able
to evaluate how the temperature distribution in the system develops, how heat fluxes
propagate and where the areas of concern are located. The heat transfer module supports all
fundamental mechanisms of heat transfer, including radiative, conductive and convective
12

heat transfer. A wide variety of physics interfaces can be applied to the heat transfer module,
and the Heat transfer in Solids interface has consistently been applied to models in the
following sections. For the heat transfer modules, the fundamental law governing is the first
law of thermodynamics, written in terms of temperature, T, from equation 2.1:

Where,

+ T = (T) +

is the density [kg/ ]

is the specific heat capacity at constant pressure [J/(kgK)]
T is absolute temperature [K]
u is the velocity vector [m/s]
k is the thermal conductivity [W/(mK)]
Q* is a heat source (or sink) [W/
]

If the velocity vector is set to zero, the governing equation for pure conductive heat transfer

becomes:

+ () =

which is the equation Solidworks uses when running simulations. The simulations carried
out are used to gather useful information for the analyses of the developing design in the next
chapter. Temperature profiles will provide an overall picture of dispersion of heat generation
whereas heat flux graphs give more detailed information of undesirable changes as the
system becomes more complex.

2.2 Design Approach

The main driving equation that enables the experimental determinations in the test rig is
Fouriers law which can be stated as follows

, in the differential form

Where,

is the local heat flux density, Wm2

k is the material's conductivity, Wm1K1,
13

is the temperature gradient, Km1.

However in the case of 1 dimensional heat transfer through a material with constant
temperature between two end points the equation reduces to:

Where
is the heat flow per unit time, W
k is the thermal conductivity of the material
A is the cross sectional area normal to the direction of the heat flow
Is the temperature difference that drives the heat flow, W/mK
Is the thickness of the heat conducting medium, m

Parameters in the equation such as heat flow, cross sectional area, temperature difference,
and thickness of the specimen are known beforehand, either in the form of experimental
observation or apparatus design. This allows us to calculate the only unknown, the thermal
conductivity (k).
2.2.1 Factors to be considered
It must be noted that this equation is applicable only for one dimensional heat. But truly one
dimensional heat flow is an idealization and can be approached to certain limits. As a result
this becomes a driving factor in the design of the test rig in order to ensure the accuracy and
validity of the determined values for thermal conductivity. And all design decisions are
validated by this need to minimize the lateral heat flow that may occur in the test specimen.
Another pre-requisite for the applicability of this equation is the prevalence of steady state
conditions. Steady state conditions can be defined as the equilibrium state at which the rate
of change temperature distributions is zero with respect to time. In order to maximize the
utility of the test rig, it is important to minimize the time taken to reach steady state by the
apparatus. Thus this will also be considered in the design calculations.
A third factor that must be considered is the effect of the contact resistance between the
plates. A value too large for this parameter will contribute too greatly to the resulting
14

temperature distribution to allow for accurate determination of the thermal conductivity of

the test piece. The major contributing factors to contact resistance are the surface roughness
of the mating elements and the presence of an air gap between the two plates.

2.3 Thermal design: development and analysis

2.3.1 Determination of plate dimensions
In order to determine the optimum heater and reference plate dimensions that allow closest
approximation of one dimensional heat flow through the specimen within practical
limitations, a parametric What-if analysis is carried out in Solidworks. This tool in
Solidworks allows the user to define a geometric parameter and its variation in subsequent
iterations to determine the consequent changes in final output, namely heat flux and
temperature distributions in our case.
This parametric study was carried out on a bare bones model of all the essential requirement
for this method of thermal conductivity. The side length of the heater and reference plates
were considered to be the parameter and they were varied from 5cm to 20cm in steps of 5
cm.

Fig 7 Setup for the parametric study (Left view)

Fig 7 depicts the setup for the parametric study. It consists of a base plate of rubber.
Followed by a heater, an aluminum reference plate and the test specimen followed by
another aluminum piece and a heater.
15

The results of this parametric study are listed in Fig 8.

Fig 8 Parametric study results for Heat Flux

As seen above the higher the plate size the smaller the lateral heat flux. This can be
explained by the added heat input at the sides of the test specimen causing a decrease in the
temperature gradient for lateral heat transfer.
Thus in accordance with the results the highest possible heater size was to be chosen.
However due to the lack of availability of heater of 20 cm size, a 15cm size heater was
procured.

The temperature distribution of the test rig for the 15cm heater size is shown in Fig 9
16

Fig 9 Temperature distribution of 15cm plate.

From this point forward, in all numerical studies the dimension of the heater and reference
plates are fixed at 15cm side length.
2.3.2 Determination of heater input
A subsequent analysis of the selected geometry was carried out to determine the ideal heat
input in order to obtain minimum heat flux in a similar manner. This determination was also
carried out in a similar manner to the previous section, i.e. a parametric study was conducted.
In this case the heat input from the lower heater was considered to be the parameter. The
reason for this choice is that the lower heat transfer in the lower sections put a reasonable
upper limit (In terms of number of design iterations) on the heat application in comparison to
the upper heater. The heat input for the lower heater was varied in steps of 5W from 0 W to
20 W.

The variation of the lateral heat flux and the temperature distribution along the length of the
specimen is shown in Fig 10 and Fig 11.

17

Fig 10 Variation of the lateral heat flux along Z-Direction

Fig 11 Variation of resultant heat flux along model length

18

H=10 W

H=5 W

H=20 W

H=15 W

H=0 W

Fig 12 Temperature Distribution along the length of the specimen for different heater
inputs
In this case it is seen that there is an increased lateral heat flux in situation of higher heat
input. This can also be explained in terms of the decreased temperature gradient that drives
the lateral heat transfer. Another expected advantage of this increased heat output is a shorter
transient response time to reach the steady state conditions required by the test rig.
Thus in accordance with the results a heat input of 20 W was chosen for the lower heater.
19

2.3.3 Refinement of the design

It is seen that to certain limits the value of contact resistance is directly proportional to the
applied load in the direction of the heat transfer. As a result of this fact a load application
mechanism was designed by using a threaded element. Also a housing for this mechanism
was needed to support it. This presented an opportunity to further minimize the lateral heat
flux in the test piece. In order to utilize this opportunity a wooden box of suitable dimensions
was constructed and glass wool insulation material was used to line the inner walls of the
box. It was expected that the added thermal resistance to heat flow that this addition
presented would hamper the lateral heat flow. To validate this expectation a further
numerical study was conducted on the setup shown

Fig 13 Numerical study

20

Fig 14 Heat Flux distribution of sample without box

Fig 15 Temperature distribution of sample without box

Fig 16 Setup of test rig with box and

insulation

Fig 17 Heat flux distribution with insulation

21

Fig 18 Temperature distribution with insulation

Fig 19 Heat flux variation with test specimen length

It is clear from the results that there is further drop in the lateral heat flux as a result of the
addition of glass wool insulation material as expected.

22

CHAPTER 3

3.1 Final design

STUD 10mm

WODDEN BOX

RUBBER
INSULATION
GLASS WOOL

ALUMINIUM
TEST SPECIMEN
FLATE PLATE
HEATER

Fig 20 Final design

The final design that was obtained after all refinements and simulations is
displayed as shown in fig 16

23

The dimensions and all the materials used in the final assembly are displayed in the table
below.

Serial Number
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

6.
7.

Part Name
Wooden Box
Base Rubber
Plate
Bottom
Heater(2)
Reference
plate(2)
Test Specimen

Material Used
Plywood
Rubber

Dimensions
30 cm30 cm30cm
26.9 cm26.9cm10mm

Steel

15cm15cm15cm

Aluminum

15cm15cm15cm

Polymer Matrix
5cm2.5mm
Composite(PEEK
with SiC)
Stud
Steel
M10(Coarse)
Inner insulation
Glass wool
26.9 cm26.9cm10mm

Table 3.1 Model Dimensions

3.2 MATERIAL SETTINGS
FLUIDS - AIR
SOLID MATERIALS
AISI 1020 Solid Material 1
Components
Solid substance

Heater-1
AISI 1020

AISI 1020 Solid Material 2

Components
Solid substance

Heater-2
AISI 1020

1060 Alloy Solid Material 1

Components
Solid substance

Aluminium-1
1060 Alloy

1060 Alloy Solid Material 2

24

Components
Solid substance

Aluminium-2
1060 Alloy

Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) Solid Material 1

Components
Compositeround-1
Solid substance
Polyetheretherketone (PEEK)
Hard rubber Solid Material 1
Components
Solid substance

Base rubber-1@Design First Assembly

Hard rubber

3.3 HEAT VOLUME SOURCES

VS Heat Generation Rate 1
Source type
Heat generation rate
Components
Coordinate system
Reference axis

Heat Generation Rate

20.000 W
Heater-1@Design First Assembly123
Global coordinate system
X

VS Heat Generation Rate 2

Source type
Heat generation rate
Components
Coordinate system
Reference axis

Heat Generation Rate

50.000 W
Heater-2@Design First Assembly123
Global coordinate system
X

3.4 Engineering Database

Solids
1060 Alloy- Aluminium-1
Path: Solids User Defined\Assem2.SLDASM\Default
Density: 2700.00 kg/m^3
Specific heat: 900.0 J/(kg*K)
Conductivity type: Isotropic
Thermal conductivity: 200.0000 W/(m*K)
25

Electrical conductivity: Dielectric

Radiation properties: No
Melting temperature: No
AISI 1020- Heater-1
Path: Solids User Defined\Design First Assembly.SLDASM\Default
Density: 7900.00 kg/m^3
Specific heat: 420.0 J/(kg*K)
Conductivity type: Isotropic
Thermal conductivity: 47.0000 W/(m*K)
Electrical conductivity: Dielectric
Radiation properties: No
Melting temperature: No

1060 Alloy
Path: Solids User Defined\Assem2.SLDASM\Default 1
Density: 2700.00 kg/m^3
Specific heat: 900.0 J/(kg*K)
Conductivity type: Isotropic
Thermal conductivity: 200.0000 W/(m*K)
Electrical conductivity: Dielectric
Radiation properties: No
Melting temperature: No
Polyetheretherketone (PEEK)
Path: Solids User Defined\Assem2.SLDASM\Default
Density: 1310.00 kg/m^3
Specific heat: 1850.0 J/(kg*K)
Conductivity type: Isotropic
Thermal conductivity: 0.2400 W/(m*K)
Electrical conductivity: Dielectric
Radiation properties: No
26

Melting temperature: No
Hard rubber
Path: Solids User Defined\Design First Assembly.SLDASM\Default
Density: 1200.00 kg/m^3
Specific heat: 1000.0 J/(kg*K)
Conductivity type: Isotropic
Thermal conductivity: 0.1500 W/(m*K)
Electrical conductivity: Dielectric
Radiation properties: No
Melting temperature: Yes
Temperature: 1000.00 K
Gases
Air
Path: Gases Pre-Defined
Specific heat ratio (Cp/Cv): 1.399
Molecular mass: 0.0290 kg/mol

27

CHAPTER 4
4.1 EXPRIMENTAL SETUP OF WOODEN CHAMBER
The Thermal analyzer consists of two flat plate heaters (resistive type) ,two aluminum
reference plates of 8mm thickness, test specimen(PMC) and rubber insulations which are
housed inside a wooden chamber having dimensions 30cm 30cm 30cm. A small square
outlet is provided at the back side of the box to facilitate the heater connection to the supply.
The stack arrangement consisting of two flat heater plates, two reference Aluminum plates
and a test specimen piece is held intact by means of a stud arrangement provided at the top of
the wooden box. The stud is welded to a 20mm diameter circular mild steel plate of 2mm
thickness which upon tightening applies load to the stack arrangement to keep them in close
contact. The stud is provided with a relatively lower pitch value for finer load application.

Fig 21 Wooden Box with stud arrangement

28

A dimmer stat is a continuously variable voltage auto-transformer. It is the most effective

device for step less, break less & continuous control of AC voltage. In this case a dimmer
stat is used to maintain a desired temperature in the Flat plate heater apparatus by cutting off
the heater once it reaches the specified temperature. Each heater is provided with a separate
dimmer stat (0-100).

Fig 22 Dimmer stat for temperature regulation

4.2 EXPRIMENTAL SETUP OF COMPONENTS TO BE STACKED

The specimen whose thermal conductivity is to be tested is inserted into the apparatus by
means a small door opening provided at the front of the wooden

Fig 23 Aluminum Reference sample

29

Box and it is sandwiched between the two reference Aluminum samples. A small punch is
provided on the reference aluminum sample in order to accommodate the thermocouple at its
interface.

Fig 24 Test specimen

Heat flux is provided to the reference sample by means of a rectangular flat plate heater of
dimensions 150mmX150mm.A total of two heaters are used each above and below the
reference sample having a power rating of 1000W and they are of resistive type

Fig 25 Flat Plate Heater

30

4.3 EXPRIMENTAL SETUP OF THERMOCOUPLES

Thermocouples are inserted into the wooden box to determine the temperatures of reference
and specimen materials. Two thermocouples are inserted above and below the specimen
material and one thermocouple is inserted for each aluminum reference plate. These four
thermocouples are connected to National Instruments NI USB - 9162 DAQ System interface
and Lab View 2013 software. The Interface shows the temperature readings in a connected
computer which equipped with LABVIEW software.

4.4 EXPRIMENTAL SETUP OF INSULATION MATERIAL

Two rubber strips are used for the purpose of insulation, one at the very bottom of the box
and the other at the top of the stack to eliminate heat conducting to the stud causing difficulty
in load application. To eliminate heat transfer along the sides of the wooden box, a layer of
glass wool is given. The wooden box is covered with mica sheets to offer better aesthetics to
the apparatus.

Fig 26 Glass Wool and Rubber

31

CHAPTER 5
EXPERIMENTAL TRIAL
5.1 PROCEDURE FOLLOWED

Initially the specimen whose conductivity is to be tested is inserted into the stack in-between
the flat plate heaters .Thermocouples are inserted in-between the plates whose temperatures
is desired. The heater is connected to the dimmer stat which in turn is connected to the power
supply. The thermocouples are connected to the interface .The stud is tightened to eliminate
any loose gaps in-between the plates. Before the power supply is switched on, the circuit is
setup in the Lab View 2013 software using National Instruments NI USB - 9162 DAQ
System which gives the temperatures of the plates in a tabular form and the thermocouples
ought to be inserted in functional ports of the interface which on other hand will result in
junk value generation. Now the power supply is switched on and the dimmer stat is set to a
particular temperature which cuts off the heater once it reaches the specified temperature.
Upon the specified time interval the temperatures are displayed in the computer which is
taken for further calculations.

Fig 27 Final setup for Experimentation

32

5.2 USING LABVIEW NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS

LABVIEW by NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS is graphical programming platform which in

this case is used to evaluate the temperature gradient present across the adjacent members
of the final steup.Both the heaters are connected to indiviual dimmerstats.
Four k-type thermocouples are used ,where two are placed between the reference material
(Aluminium)and flat plate heater .The other two thermocouples are placed above and below
the test specimen. Now the LAB VIEW software is opened and the temperature module is
selected .The time delay required between the readings are also specified .

Fig 28 LAB VIEW SOFTWARE USED FOR

PLOTTING THE TEMPERATURE GRADIENT

The channels corresponding the thermocouple used are selected from the DAQ assistant and
select RUN to obtain the results in an excel format

33

5.3 TABULATION
The results of the temperature at the interface obtained after the thermometer reaches a
steady state are tabulated as shown below

T1
106.5913
106.5019
106.3916
106.2774
106.1631
106.068
105.956
105.8871
105.8349
105.7611
105.6971
105.6372
105.5847
105.5396
105.4778
105.4103
105.3757
105.331

T2
101.3566
101.6092
101.8337
102.0587
102.264
102.4748
102.6948
102.9285
103.1759
103.4083
103.6427
103.868
104.083
104.3049
104.5157
104.7132
104.9006
105.0926

T3
119.2476
119.4377
119.611
119.7927
119.9761
120.1716
120.3535
120.5597
120.7978
121.0349
121.2739
121.5213
121.7497
121.9979
122.221
122.4264
122.6222
122.8156

T4
-57.1231
-57.1285
-57.1193
-57.2022
-57.4183
-57.691
-58.0073
-58.3445
-58.6534
-58.937
-59.1663
-59.3594
-59.5124
-59.6165
-59.7078
-59.7764
-59.82
-59.8691

Table 2.1 Temperature across the different interfaces

By using the Fourier law of heat conduction the average value of k specimen was found out to
be,

Avg. Kspecimen = 4.262W/mK

34

5.4RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

THEORETICAL VALUES
The specimen used consists of, f=2.5%, SiC particulates.

= 0.025641026

According to rule of mixtures,

+

= (1-)
Therefore we get,

= 3.98307
This is a deviation of 6.54 %.

SCOPE FOR IMPROVEMENT:

Better positioning of the thermocouple along with a housing for better interfacial
temperature determination

30

CHAPTER 6

6.1CONCLUSION
Thus the test rig for the determination of thermal conductivity of polymer matrix composites
was designed and fabricated. The experiment was carried out with the test rig and the data
acquisition system with a test specimen of PEEK (Polyetheretherketone) with Silicon carbide
particulates as the dispersed phase. The preliminary results are encouraging and it is hoped that
the test rig will prove to be a reliable and durable setup for providing experimental values of
thermal conductivity for Polymer Matrix Composites.

36

CHAPTER 7
REFERENCES
[1]

Nielsen LE. The thermal and electrical conductivity of two-phase systems. Industrial

Engineering Chemical Fund 1974;13(1):1720.

[2]

Ganapathy D, Singh K, Phelan PE, Prasher R. An effective unit cell approach to

compute the thermal conductivity of composites with cylindrical particles. J Heat Transfer
2005; 1i27 (6):5539.
[3]

Agari Y, Ueda A, Tanaka M, Nagai S. Thermal conductivity of a polymer filled with

particles in the wide range from low to super-high volume content. J Applied Polymer Science
1990;40(56):92941.
[4]

Devpura A, Phelan PE, Prasher R. Percolation theory applied to the analysis of thermal

interface materials in flip-chip technology. In: Proceedings of ITHERM conference. Las

Vegas; May 2000. p. 218.
[5]Arik, M, Petroski, J., and Weaver, S., Thermal Challenges in the future generation solidstate lighting applications: Light Emitting Diodes, Pro. Of the ASME/IEEE ITHERMConference, San Diego, 2002.
[6] F.P. Incropera, D.P. DeWitt, Fundamentals of Heat and Mass Transfer, Fourth ed., Wiley,
New York, 1996.
[7] M. deSorgo, Thermal interface materials, Electron. Cool. 2 (3) (1996).
[8] C.P. Chu, G.L. Solbrekken, V. LeBonheur, Y.E. Xu, Application of phase-change materials
in Pentiumw III and Pentiumw III Xeone processor cartridges, International Symposium
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[10] Sim LC, Ramanan SR, Ismail H, Seetharamu KN, Goh TJ. Thermal characterization of
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37