THERMAL CONTACT WITH HIGH TRANSFER COEFFICIENT AND APPLICATIONS TO THE COOLING OF A STRUCTURE SUBJECTED TO AN INTENSE THERMAL FLUX

摘要

Thermal contact with high transfer coefficient between two materials which may have different expansion coefficients, the thermal contact being characterized in that it is comprised of expanded graphite inserted between said materials which are selected amongst carbon-containing materials, ceramics and metals or metal alloys. The expanded graphite is either inserted in the form of laminated or compressed sheet, or compressed in situ. The invention also relates to a device for cooling a structure subjected to an intense, continuous, discontinuous or pulsed thermal flux, by means of fluid circulation tubes arranged in channels (2) provided in said structure. A flexible material (4), having good heat conducting properties, in a compressed state, such as expanded graphite is interleaved between the structure (1) to be cooled and each tube (3).