The quest for improvement of thermal conductivity in every area including aerospace structures is gaining momentum as the modern day technology is embedded with electronics which generate considerable amounts of heat energy. In some other applications, the thermal energy must be absorbed or released at a very fast rate. Natural graphite is highly anisotropic and has excellent thermal and electrical conductivity in a-direction hence; it is one of the potential candidates to enhance thermal conductivity. This paper encompasses various preparation routes used to enhance thermal conductivity in materials/composites using graphite flakes in its natural and treated forms along with characterization results of thermal conductivity and/ or electrical resistivity where available. Addition of graphite has shown to improve thermal conductivity in some materials by 30-130 times whereas one method of preparation described here shows composites to have thermal conductivity as high as 750 W/m K.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract