β-SiC nano-particles enhanced thermal conductivity of pressureless solid-phase sintering SiC

SiC has a high theoretical thermal conductivity, excellent mechanical, and corrosion-resistant properties, making it a promising material for heat exchanger applications. However, the thermal conductivity of SiC can't satisfy the requirement at present. This study proposes the strategy of incorporating β-SiC nano-particles (β-SiCnp) into SiC through pressureless solid phase sintering (PSS-SiC) to enhance its thermal conductivity, resulting in an increase from 153 W/(m·K) to 207.5 W/(m·K). The increase in thermal conductivity in PSS-SiC by β-SiCnp is believed to be primarily caused by the longer phonon mean free path due to high density and large grain size.