-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- smt007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueComing to Terms With AI
In this issue, we examine the profound effect artificial intelligence and machine learning are having on manufacturing and business processes. We follow technology, innovation, and money as automation becomes the new key indicator of growth in our industry.
Box Build
One trend is to add box build and final assembly to your product offering. In this issue, we explore the opportunities and risks of adding system assembly to your service portfolio.
IPC APEX EXPO 2024 Pre-show
This month’s issue devotes its pages to a comprehensive preview of the IPC APEX EXPO 2024 event. Whether your role is technical or business, if you're new-to-the-industry or seasoned veteran, you'll find value throughout this program.
- Articles
- Columns
Search Console
- Links
- Events
||| MENU - smt007 Magazine
Electrolube's Innovative New Phase Change Materials Offer Practical Alternatives to Thermal Greases
February 23, 2017 | ElectrolubeEstimated reading time: 2 minutes
Electrolube has released two new phase change Thermal Management materials that offer high thermal conductivity, low phase change temperatures and low thermal resistance at the interface. Phase change materials are highly suited to the thermal management of electronic assemblies for a number of reasons. They offer efficient thermal transfer, along with enhanced performance with thermal shock cycles and greater thermal protection where temperature spikes can occur, due to their ability to store and release thermal energy (latent heat) during the phase change process.
Providing an alternative to traditional thermal greases, once heated above their phase change temperature the new phase change materials become highly thixotropic liquids that perform equally as well as, but often superior to a thermal grease. The consistency and performance of these new materials avoids possible application and migration problems that can be associated with thermal greases. Electrolube has added two new thermally conductive phase change materials to its thermal management product portfolio: TPM350 and TPM550.
TPM350 has a thermal conductivity of 3.5W/m.K and becomes workable at approximately 50°C. At this 'activation' temperature it changes state to become a lower viscosity material, minimising contact thermal resistance and improving thermal conductivity. Once it cools, it reverts back to its original state. The material’s advanced formulation ensures minimal contact thermal resistance.
TPM550 has a higher thermal conductivity of 5.5W/m.K and an activation temperature of 45˚C. In common with the TPM350 product, TPM550 produces no mess due to its thixotropic characteristics which prevent flow outside of defined interfaces. Both TPM350 and TPM550 can be reworked and their low specific gravity means that more applications can be served per kilogram of the materials, reducing production costs.
The new phase change materials are silicone-free, have an operating temperature range of -40 to +125˚C and are RoHS-2 compliant. TPM350 and TPM 550 are both screen printable and, while they do contain small amounts of solvent to improve wettability on application, this rapidly evaporates following application to leave the solid phase change material on the substrate.
The new phase change materials were unveiled at Electronica in November 2016 with great success. Commenting on the product launch, Ron Jakeman, Electrolube's Group Managing Director, said, “Our range of thermal interface materials on display at Electronica attracted more interest than we could have anticipated, highlighting how manufacturers are fully embracing the importance of electronics protection and turning to Electrolube as a reliable solutions provider for their off-the-shelf and bespoke requirements. The level of enquiries about Electrolube’s new thermal phase change materials TPM350 and TPM550 was especially high, showing the ever increasing importance among visitors of managing heat dissipation effectively in order to achieve maximum reliability."
Suggested Items
Material Insight: The Dielectric Constant of PCB Materials
05/17/2024 | Dr. Preeya Kuray -- Column: Material InsightIn the world of PCB design, miniaturization can be achieved by using low dielectric constant (Dk) materials. Low Dk materials can allow for a reduction in thickness while maintaining a given trace width, leading to lower transmission loss and higher density circuitry.
IPC APEX EXPO: Some Thoughts About Growth
05/16/2024 | Dan Feinberg, I-Connect007After two and a half days of wandering the aisles at IPC APEX EXPO 2024, for the first time, I almost felt like I was exploring CES. There were so many booths and exhibits that I could describe, but I’d like to focus on the growth and huge value of this event, which has expanded well beyond just the growing and impressive exhibit show floor.
The Shaughnessy Report: Unlock Your High-speed Material Constraints
05/15/2024 | Andy Shaughnessy -- Column: The Shaughnessy ReportThe world of PCB materials used to be a fairly simple one. It was divided into two groups: the “traditional” laminates, often called FR-4, and the high-speed laminates developed especially for high-speed PCBs. These were two worlds that usually didn’t collide. But then traditional laminates started getting better, and high-speed designers and design engineers took notice and started to reconsider what FR-4 could be used for.
Breaking High-speed Material Constraints: Design007 Magazine — May 2024
05/14/2024 | I-Connect007 Editorial TeamDo you need specialty materials for your high-speed designs? Maybe not. Improvements in resins mean designers of high-speed boards can sometimes use traditional laminate systems instead of high-speed materials, saving time and money while streamlining the fab process. In the May 2024 issue of Design007 Magazine, our contributors explain how to avoid overconstraining your materials when working with high-speed boards.
Indium Experts to Present at Electronics in Harsh Environments SMTA Conference
05/13/2024 | Indium Corporationndium Corporation Technical Manager for Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, Karthik Vijay, will deliver a technical presentation and Indium Corporation Senior Technologist, Dr. Ronald Lasky, will deliver both a workshop and technical presentation at the Electronics in Harsh Environments SMTA Conference on May 14-16 in Copenhagen, Denmark.