Aluminum-based composites with high thermal conductivity by constructing thermal-diffusion network and interfacial modification

The continuous copper thermal-diffusion network of graphite flakes (GFs), aluminum sheets (Als), and Al particles (Alp) was prepared via chemical plating methods. After the vacuum-pressure infiltration process, Cu coatings contacted with other components forming three dimensional thermal diffusion pathways. The prepared Als@Cu/Alp@Cu/GFs@Cu/Al composites exhibited high effective thermal transfer properties. Moreover, the thermal conductivity (TC) of the Als@Cu-2/Alp@Cu/GFs@Cu/Al composite showed the optimal value of 542.66 W/m·K, which was larger than the pure Al matrix about 2.30 times. In this study, the innovative preparation method could be applied to fabricate aluminum-based composites with better thermal diffusion performance.