About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
MS&T26: Materials Science & Technology
|
| Symposium
|
Lightweight Composites, Materials, and Alloys
|
| Presentation Title |
Processing of Bicontinuous Nanocomposites for Tailorable Thermal and Electrical Transport |
| Author(s) |
Kevin P. Anderson, Benjamin Greenberg, Zoey Warecki, Marc Currie, Joseph Prestigiacomo, Daniel Pennachio, Alan Jacobs, Austin Cendejas, Eric Patterson, James Wollmershauser, Boris Feygelson |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Kevin P. Anderson |
| Abstract Scope |
Fabricating bulk nanocomposites with nanoscale precision is critical for advancing functional materials. We present a novel processing strategy utilizing atomic layer deposition (ALD) on nanopowder compacts, followed by Environmentally Controlled – Pressure Assisted Sintering (EC-PAS). This combination yields fully dense macroscopic solids while preserving engineered nanoscale architectures, generating bicontinuous, percolated multi-phase networks. Macroscopic electrical and thermal conductivities are tailored by controlling the nanopowder substrate, applied coating chemistries, and specific structural dimensions via ALD cycles. The efficacy of this approach is demonstrated in targeted functional systems, including highly tunable SiO<sub>2</sub>/ZnO:Al composites and advanced thermoelectrics. In these systems, preventing structural coarsening during densification allows precise manipulation of phase volume fractions and network connectivity. Ultimately, this framework enables the deliberate design of percolating solid-state networks to optimize thermal and electrical transport for diverse functional applications. |