Abstract:
This Project is based on the Measurement of Steady-State Thermal Conductivity by Lee’s Disc
method. The main purpose is to facilitate measuring the thermal conductivity by minimizing the
inherent errors of the original process. Thermal conductivity is the ability of a material to conduct
heat, and it represents the quantity of thermal energy that flows per unit time through a unit area
with a temperature gradient of 1°per unit distance. Thermal conductivity is a necessary feature to
dissipate the transformed thermal energy in a system. Thermal conductivity is a fairly very
important material property for processing of rubber during part manufacturing because
temperature distribution affects degree of crosslinking and hence maintaining the properties of the
end part correctly. The thermal conductivity of a rubber compound ideally needs to be studied as
a function of its state of curing and temperature. However, the device is presented at this stage is
a steady state instrument which is capable of measuring the thermal conductivity of a compound
at any temperature within the range 40°C to 180°C.
The instrument uses an electric heat source which transfers a steady quantity of heat through the
test specimen which heats up a metallic mass to a steady temperature. The power generated at the
steady state of the system is balanced by the power dissipated directly from the source and the
power dissipated through the test specimen to the heat sink. The steady state temperatures are used
to calculate the thermal conductivity of the material.
Citation:
Dushyantha, A.A.N., Pathiraja, P.A.C.P., & Weragoda, V.S.C. (2021). Measurement of steady state thermal conductivity of rubber compounds [Abstract]. In A.A.G.A. Abeygunawardane (Ed.), Innovative materials through mathematical modeling and simulations (p. 11). Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Moratuwa.