image of a cast iron skillet with copper pennies glued to the bottom. caption: I upgraded my cast iron skillet. Since copper is a better conductor I glued a bunch of pennies to the bottom. this thing really cooks now!
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[–] 6 points 1 month ago (3 children)

This should make the thermal conductivity worse no?

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  • [–] 6 points 1 month ago* (2 children)

    Yes it would. Adding material generally makes thermal conductivity worse. There is no material with negative thermal resistance, so adding more will always increase thermal resistance by at least a bit.

    The only exception is 3D geometries, where an increase in surface area due to the extra material can outweigh the effect of the added material, and lead to a net increase in thermal transfer.

    This can lead to a paradoxical effect, where ADDING insulation around a pipe leads to HIGHER transfer than with less insulation material, because the added material increases the exterior diameter, and therefore surface area.

    (Heatsinks are also a good example. It is more material than just the component by itself, but increases surface area by such a massive amount that it more than outweighs the added material)

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