Thermally Conductive Epoxy Composites Using Porous Boron Nitride Network and Polydopamine-Treated Aluminum Oxide

Abstract

A high-performancethermally conductive composite wasfabricatedby using epoxy (EP) and hybrid fillers consisting of polydopamine(PDA)-treated alumina (AO) and a porous boron nitride (BN) networkwith carbonized cellulose nanofibers (BNCNF). The continuous heattransfer paths were formed by freeze-cast porous BN. Moreover, theimproved interfacial interaction between filler and matrix was achievedby hydrogen bonding derived from amin group on PDA-AO and hydroxylgroup on BNCNF. This composite exhibited a high thermal conductivity(4.3 W m(-1) K-1, 2050% enhancementcompared to pure EP) along the through-plane direction within thematrix and improved tensile stress (80.86%). Based on these findings,it can be concluded that the EP/BNCNF/PDA-AO composites have the potentialto significantly improve thermal management in electronic devices.The fabricated epoxy composites also exhibited promising characteristicsfor the development of thermal management systems.