Seongkyun Kim , Taeyeop Kim , Jaehyun Sung , Yongjun Kim , Dongwoo Lee and Seunghyun BaikMaterials Horizons
Thermal rectification is an asymmetric heat transport phenomenon where thermal conductance changes depending on the temperature gradient direction. The experimentally reported efficiency of thermal rectification materials and devices, which are applicable for a wide range of temperatures, is relatively low. Here we report a giant thermal rectification efficiency of 218% by maximizing asymmetry in …
C. MUHAMMED AJMAL, SEOKJAE CHA, WONJOON KIM, K. P. FASEELA, HEEJUN YANG, AND SEUNGHYUN BAIKScience Advances
The dependence of the electrical resistance on materials’ geometry determines the performance of conductive nanocomposites. Here, we report the invariable resistance of a conductive nanocomposite over 30% strain. This is enabled by the in situ–generated hierarchically structured silver nanosatellite particles, realizing a short interparticle distance (4.37 nm) in a stretchable silicone rubber matr…
K. P. Faseela, C. Muhammed Ajmal, Seokjae Cha, Seunghyun BaikAdvanced Functional Materials
Copper (Cu) is an attractive low-cost alternative to silver or gold. However, it is susceptible to oxidation in air. Here, facile in situ regeneration of oxidized Cu flakes (CuFLs) for the synthesis of highly conductive non-oxidized nanocomposites is reported. The oxidized CuFLs are regenerated into non-oxidized CuFLs and Cu nanosatellite (CuNS) particles by formic acid-aided in situ etching and r…
Shabas Ahammed Abdul Jaleel, Taehun Kim, Seunghyun BaikAdvanced Materials
Phase-change materials (PCMs) have received considerable attention to take advantage of both pad-type and grease-type thermal interface materials (TIMs). However, the critical drawbacks of leaking, non-recyclability, and low thermal conductivity (κ) hinder industrial applications of PCM TIMs. Here, leakage-free healable PCM TIMs with extraordinarily high κ and low total thermal resistance (Rt) are…
Healable stretchable conductive nanocomposites have received considerable attention. However, there has been a trade-off between the filler-induced electrical conductivity (σ) and polymer-driven mechanical strength. Here significant enhancements in both σ and mechanical strength by designing reversible covalent bonding of the polymer matrix and filler-matrix covalent bifunctionalization are reported. A polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene-ran-butylene)-block-polystyrene grafted with maleic anhydride forms the strong reversible covalent bonding with furfuryl alcohol through the Diels–Alder reaction. Small (7.5 nm) and medium (117 nm) nanosatellite particles are generated by in situ etching of silver flakes, enabling electron tunneling-assisted percolation. The filler-polymer covalent bifunctionalization is achieved by 3-mercaptopropanoic acid. Altogether, this results in high σ (108 300 S m−1) and tensile strength (16.4 MPa), breaking the trade-off behavior. A nearly perfect (≈100%) healing efficiency is achieved in both σ and tensile strength. The conductive nanocomposite figure of merit (1.78 T Pa S m−1), defined by the product of σ and tensile strength, is orders of magnitude greater than the data in literature. The nanocomposite may find applications in healable strain sensors and electronic materials.
