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Unveiling empirical correlation between electrical and thermal conductivities of medium porosity open-cell porous aluminium fabricated by replication casting method

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Abstract

In this work, the electrical and thermal conductivities of open-cell porous aluminium materials produced by replication casting method are investigated and the correlations between them studied. The four-point probe method was used to measure the electrical conductivity of the samples, while the C-therm analyser was used to experimentally determine the thermal conductivity of the cellular materials. The results show that both electrical and thermal conductivities of the porous samples increase as their relative density is increased. Comparison of the measured data with theoretical models shows that the scaling function with a dynamic exponent equal to 1.55 fits the experimental data for electrical conductivity. In addition, an empirical relationship was found to exist between measured electrical and thermal conductivities, while a modified Wiedemann-Franz law was also deduced to correlate the electrical and thermal conductivities of the porous aluminium materials.

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Funding

The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND), Nigeria, provided funds for this research work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria

    Njoku Romanus Egwuonwu & Aigbodion Victor Sunday

  2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Abuja, Abuja, Nigeria

    Njoku Romanus Egwuonwu & Oloche Oyihi Boniface

  3. Africa Centre of Excellency for Sustainable Power and Energy Development, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria

    Aigbodion Victor Sunday

  4. Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, University of Johannesburg, P. O. Box 534, Auckland Park, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Aigbodion Victor Sunday

Authors
  1. Njoku Romanus Egwuonwu
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  2. Oloche Oyihi Boniface
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  3. Aigbodion Victor Sunday
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All contributed 100% to the study’s development, from experimentation to analysis.

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Correspondence to Aigbodion Victor Sunday.

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Egwuonwu, N.R., Boniface, O.O. & Sunday, A.V. Unveiling empirical correlation between electrical and thermal conductivities of medium porosity open-cell porous aluminium fabricated by replication casting method. Int J Adv Manuf Technol 131, 3499–3507 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00170-024-13230-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00170-024-13230-6

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