High temperature thermal conductivity measurements are important for exploration and performance evaluation of materials existing in high temperature environments. Insulating materials with low thermal conductivities, such as furnace insulation and high fluid transport plumbing are designed and used to help heat from exiting a system into its surroundings.
Accurately measuring thermal conductivity at high temperatures using transient methods has traditionally been very hard to achieve primarily due to limitations in the sensor materials. Traditional sensors use glass or plastic dielectric coatings and silicone based sealants to protect the sensor chip, but can become soft at high temperature, damaging the sensor and/or inaccurately measuring the materials thermal conductivity. Some traditional transient methods use a mica-based insulation material, which is highly fragile and often limits the sensor to a single use. C-Therm’s TCi Thermal Conductivity Analyzer’s high temperature module for insulation materials is the leading approach to handling thermal conductivity measurements up to 500°C, as it utilizes a special sensor chip with an alumina dielectric and ceramic sealant to ensure no softening and proper operation at elevated temperatures. Moreover – the unique, robust single-sided design and alumina sensor chip protect the sensor against mechanical damage in standard use and are not vulnerable to delamination or breakage in routine handling, resulting in a sensor that can be reused indefinitely.
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