SEDL / STP / STP411-EB / STP47221S

An Improved Guarded-Cold-Plate Thermal-Conductivity Apparatus

Black, I. A.
Senior research engineer, Arthur D. Little, Inc., Cambridge, Mass.

Wechsler, A. E.
Group leader, Arthur D. Little, Inc., Cambridge, Mass.

Glaser, P. E.
Head, Arthur D. Little, Inc., Cambridge, Mass.

Fountain, J. A.
Physicist, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala.

Pages: 21    Published: Jan 1967

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Abstract

Construction details are presented for an improved 6-in.-diameter flat-plate calorimeter used in measuring thermal conductivity of evacuated or nonevacuated solid, foamed, fibrous, or particulate insulation materials. The apparatus incorporates the important features of the designs of an earlier 6-in. apparatus and the 12-in. double-guarded calorimeter and results in a compact self-contained unit which can be used with a standard 4-in. high vacuum pumping system. The measuring vessel of the apparatus is 3 in. in diameter; the guard ring vessel is 1 1/2 in. wide. The space between the warm and cold plates can be adjusted from outside the apparatus both before and during the test. Specimens up to 1 in. thick can be tested under a mechanical compression of up to 20 psi. The apparatus is designed to operate between 77 and 450 K. A thermostatically controlled oil bath is provided for controlling the temperature of the warm plate between 300 and 400 K. Techniques for control of warm-plate temperatures below 300 K are described, and the results of several performance tests using evacuated specimens are presented.