A detailed experimental study of a hybrid composite system for thermal management (TM) of electronics
devices was performed. Three different TM modules made of pure carbon foam (CF), a composite of CF
and Paraffin wax (RT65) as a phase change material (PCM), and a composite of CF, RT65 and multi wall
carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) as a thermal conductivity enhancer were developed and tested. Two types
of carbon foam materials of different thermal conductivities, namely CF-20 of low thermal conductivity
(3.1 W/m K) and KL1-250 of medium thermal conductivity (40 W/m K) were used in the three Modules.
Tests conducted at different power densities showed a reasonable delay in reaching the heater steady
state temperatures using TM module made of CF þ RT65 as compared to pure CF. Heat transfer
enhancement due to entrapped MWCNTs in the CF micro cells have a significant effect on the thermal
response of the TM modules. The delay and decrease of heater surface temperature increase with the
inclusion of MWCNTs in the TM module made of CF þ RT65/MWCNTs. TM modules with enhanced
thermal conductivity of carbon foam KL1-250 was shown to have good capability to control a high power
loads as compared to CF-20. The effectiveness of inclusion of MWCNTs was remarkable in TM modules
based on CF-20 as compared to KL1-250.