Thermal characteristics of silicone rubber filled with ATH and silica under laser heating

This work explores the thermal behavior of silicone rubber filled at different concentrations with alumina trihydrate (ATH) and silica. Three particle sizes, 1.5 /spl mu/m, 5 /spl mu/m and 10 /spl mu/m, were employed in the sample preparation. A near-infrared laser was used to heat the samples. The concentration of the filler plays a major role on improving thermal conductivity when compared to particle size. Nevertheless, better thermal conductivity could be distinguished at 5 /spl mu/m for ATH and 1.5 /spl mu/m for silica, at all concentrations.