Enhancing thermal conductivity in graphene-loaded paint: Effects of phase change, rheology and filler size

High thermal-conductivity coatings have garnered much attention in fields such as the automotive and aerospace industries. Commonly used filler-loaded coatings are limited either by the high viscosity of the coating paint or by the intrinsic properties of the filler. In this study, we used graphene as a high thermal conductivity filler to enhance the properties of paint used in the automotive industry. The effects of filler size on the thermal conductivity and viscosity of stable liquid dispersion (paint) are studied and modeled in graphene nanoplatelet-loaded paint (2.47 vol%), which exhibits enhanced thermal conductivity of 160% (1.6 vs. 0.6 W (m K)(-1) for the neat commercial paint) and low viscosity. Furthermore, the filler with the optimum performance (in the paint) is studied in solid state, where it elicits a 720% enhancement in thermal conductivity (14.4 vol%).