Shape-stable Bi-Sn-In alloy/Ag/copper foam composite phase change material for thermal storage and management

With the increasing challenge of heat dissipation in electronic device, the development of rapid thermal storage and management materials with high thermal conductivity becomes an important topic. This study developed a novel low melting point metal composite phase change material composed of Bi-Sn-In alloy, Ag particles (1–4 wt%) and copper foam (apertures 0.25–0.64 mm) using high thermal conductivity synergetic enhanced effect. The Ag particles were uniformly distributed in Bi-Sn-In alloy and they changed to Ag strips with high Ag content, and Bi-Sn-In alloy/Ag can be evenly filled in apertures of copper foam. Bi-Sn-In alloy/Ag/copper foam composite with optimal aperture of 0.42 mm exhibited highest shape stability, because it avoided molten alloy leakage for larger apertures and residual alloy which was not pressed into copper foam for small apertures. As Ag content increases, the melting points of Bi-Sn-In alloy/Ag and Bi-Sn-In alloy/Ag/copper foam with Ag content of 4 wt% respectively increased by 4.91 % and 2.46 %, while their enthalpy slightly decreases by 10.9 % and 2.49 %. More importantly, the synergistic effect of Ag strips and copper skeleton addition formed continuous channels for heat transfer. The thermal conductivities of alloy/Ag (4 wt%) and alloy/Ag (4 wt%)/copper foam were respectively 22.4 and 42.7 Wm−1 °C−1, and they were remarkably higher than that of Bi-Sn-In alloy (16.4 Wm−1 °C−1). Furthermore, thermal management test showed that Bi-Sn-In alloy/Ag/foam copper had the most prominent endothermic and exothermic properties. The outstanding performance of present Bi-Sn-In alloy/Ag/copper foam demonstrates a promising prospect for solving the thermal management problems of contemporary electronic devices.