Materials - Best of both worlds

With Vari-k-Graphmet, a combination of highly conductive graphite foam and ductile metal powders, Oak Ridge National Laboratory has created an entirely new family of metal matrix composites that broadens the use of graphite foam. Vari-k-Graphmet offers high-strength, low-mass titanium-graphite foam composites with thermal conductivities up to 20 times higher than pure titanium. Using this approach, scientists can marry materials with dissimilar properties – for example high strength on one surface and high thermal conductivity on the other – creating a product with the best qualities of each individually. These can be tailored to varied applications and can potentially be applied to electronics, automobile exhaust systems, brakes, LED lighting, refrigeration, power converters, heat sinks and heat exchangers. Vari-k-Graphmet was developed by Paul Menchofer and James Klett.