Dual‐Ordering Strategy for Simultaneous High‐Strength and High‐Thermal‐Conductivity Phthalonitrile Composites via Liquid Crystal Engineering

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Authors: Wenlong Jiang, Pingxia Zhang, Zi Wang, Xin Zhou, Benhao Xin, Yue Wang, Ying Guo, Kun Zheng, Heng Zhou, Tong Zhao
Cited by: 1
References: 61

Abstract

ABSTRACT Developing polymer composites with simultaneous high thermal conductivity and mechanical integrity remains challenging due to interfacial phonon scattering and the filler‐loading trade‐off. Herein, a hierarchical “dual‐ordering” strategy is proposed to construct high‐performance structural‐functional integrated materials by synergizing a thermotropic liquid crystalline phthalonitrile (LCPN) matrix with cyanobiphenyl‐based mesogen‐functionalized graphene (CBN‐G). This strategy operates on two synergistic levels: the in situ locking of nematic liquid crystalline domains within the matrix and the construction of a covalent “phonon‐matching” gradient interface. The pristine resin matrix thereby achieves a high intrinsic in‐plane thermal conductivity of 0.71 W m − 1 K − 1 . Crucially, the interfacial ordering is theoretically validated by non‐equilibrium molecular dynamics (NEMD) simulations to reduce interfacial thermal resistance by ∼79% via enhanced vibrational resonance. Consequently, the resulting composite delivers an exceptional in‐plane thermal conductivity of 6.55 W m − 1 K − 1 at a low loading of 10 wt.%. Furthermore, the robust covalent bridging transforms the failure mechanism from adhesive to cohesive, boosting the flexural strength to 123 MPa—an improvement of 89% over physically blended counterparts. This work not only elucidates the atomic‐scale mechanism of interfacial phonon transport but also establishes a versatile engineering paradigm for next‐generation thermal management systems in extreme environments.

Fields of Study & Subjects

Thermal properties of materials Thermal Radiation and Cooling Technologies Phase Change Materials Research

Publication details

Journal / source
Advanced Functional Materials
Publisher
Wiley
Volume
36
Issue
57
Publication date
11 May 2026
Language
EN