Aluminum alloys are the most common heat sink material. This is because aluminum costs less than copper. However copper is used where higher levels of thermal conductivity are needed.
Some heat sinks use a combination aluminum fins with a copper base. A more household use of metal with good thermal conductivity is in cookware. That is why copper is used in the bottoms of high-quality cookware because the metal rapidly conducts the heat and spreads it evenly across its surface.
It may take a little longer to heat up your food, but your wallet will thank you for it! We are metal experts and have been providing quality customer service and products since At Metal Supermarkets, we supply a wide range of metals for a variety of applications. Our stock includes: mild steel, stainless steel, aluminum, tool steel, alloy steel, brass, bronze and copper.
We stock a wide range of shapes including: bars, tubes, sheets, plates and more. And we can cut metal to your exact specifications. See all Blog Posts. Here are some important applications which require metals that conduct heat well: Heat Exchangers Heat Sinks Cookware Heat Exchangers A heat exchanger is a common application where good thermal conductivity is important.
Heat exchangers are commonly used in the following situations: Industrial Facilities Heat exchangers in industrial facilities include fossil and nuclear power plants, chemical plants, desalination plants and marine services. Solar Thermal Water Systems Solar water heaters are a cost-effective way to heat water in which a copper tube is used to transfer the solar thermal energy to the water.
Gas Water Heaters Gas water heat exchangers transfer the heat generated by gas fuels to water. Forced Air Heating and Cooling Heat pumps using air have long been used for residential and commercial heating. Pure metals will tend to provide the best conductivity. In most metals, the existence of impurities restricts the flow of electrons. So alloys tend to offer less electrical conductivity than pure metal. If different properties provided by alloying are required for additional hardness or strength, for example it is important to choose the alloy additions that do not significantly affect conductivity if that is also important.
Metals conduct electricity by allowing free electrons to move between the atoms. These electrons are not associated with a single atom or covalent bond. Since like charges repel each other, the movement of one free electron within the lattice dislodges those in the next atom, and the process repeats — moving in the direction of the current, toward the positively charged end. Thermal conductivity is similar to electrical in that exciting atoms in one section works to excite and vibrate adjacent atoms.
That motion or kinetic energy — not unlike rubbing your hands together to get warm — allows heat to move through the metal. Alloys, which are a combination of different metallic elements, tend to offer a lower level of thermal conductivity than pure metals. Atoms of different size or atomic weight will vibrate at a different rate, which changes the pattern of thermal conductivity.
If there is less energy transfer between atoms, there is less conductivity. Pure silver and copper provide the highest thermal conductivity, with aluminum less so. Follow-up on this answer.
Related Questions. Still Curious? Kelly- The reason metals conduct heat so well is that the electrons in them can move around easily, and they can carry heat from one part to another.
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