NEW DIRECT MEASUREMENT TECHNIQUES FOR THERMAL-CONDUCTIVITY, THERMAL-DIFFUSIVITY, AND SPECIFIC-HEAT OF ADVANCED MATERIALS

Thermal conductivity, specific heat and thermal diffusivity are all essential properties of engineered plastics, ceramics, composites and other materials, whether for end-use products or processing applications. The paper presents new fully automated instrumentation for direct measurement of these properties on a wide variety of materials. Thermal conductivity can be measured in a solid or molten state up to 300-degrees-C. Thermal diffusivity measurements can be performed to 2000-degrees-C, with optional software for specific heat calculation. Finally, a large-sample calorimeter provides specific heat measurements on composites and other inhomogeneous materials which cannot be tested accurately using conventional (differential scanning calorimeter) instrumentation.