High thermal conductive polyurethane composite films with a three-dimensional boron nitride network in-situ constructed by multi-folding and multi-laminating

Based on the chemical modifications of the few-layer boron nitride nanosheets (BNNSs) prepared by ball milling, several BNNS/polyurethane (PU) composite films (non-laminated films) were prepared by solution blending. It showed that the modified BNNSs (M-BNNSs) in PU matrices assembled into boron nitride (BN) micro-flakes and mildly orientated along the film planes. Then, an approach of multi-folding and multi-laminating further promoted the orientation, stacking and connection of BN micro-flakes, by which a three-dimensional (3D) BN network composed of lamellar BN skeleton and a small number of BN linkers was in-situ constructed in the PU composite films (laminated films). For the existence of a continuous heat conductive channel based on the 3D BN network, the thermal conductivities (TCs) of the laminated films were obviously enhanced compared to the corresponding non-laminated films. The incorporation of M-BNNSs further improved the electrical insulation of the laminated films. When the M-BNNS content was 50 wt%, the in-plane TC of the laminated film reached 23.80 W/m·K. The laminated film with M-BNNS content of 30 wt% showed high TC, good flexibility, and outstanding electrical insulation, who is a promising candidate for the flexible thermal management materials.