Enhancement of thermal conductivity of BN-Ni/epoxy resin composites through the orientation of BN-Ni fillers by magnetic field and hot-pressing

The construction of high thermal conductivity polymer composites by the orientation of fillers is of great significance in electronic devices. Herein, a novel strategy to prepare boron nitride-Ni nanoparticles/epoxy resin composites (hmBN-Ni/EP) through the synergistic effect of magnetic field and hot-pressing on the orientation of BN-Ni fillers has been reported. hmBN-Ni/EP composites have better BN orientation in the in-plane direction than other BN-based/EP composites obtained by hot-pressing or magnetic field orientation only. The thermal conductivity of hmBN-Ni/EP reached 2.42 W m−1 K−1 at 30 wt% BN-Ni loading, which was 1145% higher than pure EP. The enhancement of thermal conductivity of hmBN-Ni/EP was attributed to the high in-plane orientation of BN-Ni through the synergistic effect of magnetic field orientation and hot-pressing. Meanwhile, the as-prepared hmBN-Ni/EP composites showed good insulation and mechanical properties which were facilitated to its industrial application in electronic packaging. This work provided a new strategy for better orientation of BN-Based fillers in polymer matrix by combining the magnetic field orientation and hot-pressing.