New BNC patent granted that allows for a concept that can offer an alternative to conventional heating methods

BNC, in collaboration with Imperial College, has been granted a patent in the UK (PCT/GB2012/053261) protecting a very innovative idea that can offer an alternative to conventional heating methods. The idea is based in the use of materials with excellent thermal and electrical transport properties (k=0.4 W/mK; σ=60 S/m) that can be directly heated with an electrical current, via the Joule effect. Direct Joule heating enables reliable, fast (10 K/s), energy-efficient (0.02 W/K) and uniform temperature control of the material; in contrast, conventional external heating is usually associated with long latency, poor feedback, and thermal gradients. The materials BNC propose are based on chemically crosslinked carbon nanotubes synthesised following a particular synthesis method that has been developed within the group. These materials show excellent thermal and electrical transport properties (k=0.4 W/mK; σ=60 S/m) opening a wide range of potential applications.