I-Corps: Nanocarbon Foam

I-Corps项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力在于，它将引入一种新的纳米碳泡沫技术，可用于多种工业应用。最初，该技术有望通过纳米碳泡沫的实施来提高电子产品的热管理性能。热管理对许多电子和能源应用至关重要，因为不断增加的热量产生已经成为这些设备的进步和有效运行的障碍。由纳米碳泡沫制成的热管理设备可以有效地消散电子设备中存在的高热流，从而确保提高电子设备的性能。纳米碳泡沫的轻质、超弹性和高稳定性使其成为便携式和柔性电子设备热管理的独特选择。除了热管理，纳米碳泡沫的其他应用还包括用于先进电池的电极、燃料电池、压力传感器和医疗支架。这个I-Corps项目的重点是纳米碳泡沫在热管理方面的潜在应用。纳米碳泡沫是一种基于碳纳米管的全碳多孔材料。它由大量的微尺度细胞和亚微厚壁和纳米尺度的孔组成。由于其独特的结构，纳米碳泡沫具有高毛细管压力、超吸附性、大工作流体储存量和快速流体传递能力。它们还具有导电性、轻便、稳定和柔韧性。这些特点使纳米碳泡沫成为热管理产品的新型灯芯材料，并且比现有的灯芯材料具有更好的性能。简单和可扩展的制造过程可以导致低成本和高质量的设备制造。该项目的目标是在电子和热管理行业开展重点客户发现工作，以评估纳米碳泡沫的商业潜力。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is that it will introduce a new nanocarbon foam technology that can be utilized in multiple industrial applications. Initially the technology is expected to enhance the performance of thermal management products in electronics through the implementation of nanocarbon foams. Thermal management is critically important to many electronics and energy applications because ever-increasing generation of heat has become an impediment to the advancement and efficient operation of those devices. Thermal management devices made from nanocarbon foams could ensure enhanced performance of electronic devices by efficiently dissipating the high heat fluxes present in these devices. The lightweight, super-elastic, and high stability properties of nanocarbon foams make them a unique alternative for the thermal management of portable and flexible electronic devices. In addition to thermal management, other applications of nanocarbon foams include use in electrodes for advanced batteries, in fuel cells, in pressure sensors, and in scaffolds for medical treatments.This I-Corps project focuses on potential applications of nanocarbon foams for thermal management. Nanocarbon foam is a carbon nanotube based all carbon porous material. It consists of large numbers of micro-scale cells and sub-micro thick walls with nano-scale pores. Because of their unique structures, the nanocarbon foams show high capillary pressure, super-absorption, large working fluid storage, and fast fluid transfer capabilities. They are also conductive, lightweight, stable, and flexible. These features allow nanocarbon foams to be a novel wick material for thermal management products and have a better performance than current wick materials. The simple and scalable fabrication process could lead to low cost and high quality device manufacturing. The goal of this project is to do focused customer discovery work in the electronics and thermal management industries to evaluate the commercial potential of nanocarbon foams.