CES Information Guide - Materials Science Engineering

M A T E R I A L S C I E N C E & E N G I N E E R I N G

Background
Material Classes

Material Structure
Physical Properties

Mechanical

Electrical

Thermal

Optical

Material Selection

Material Processing

Example Case Studies

Thermal Properties

Thermal properties are in general the material properties that result from temperature change of the material.

The thermal resistance is an example of one of a material's thermal properties. Thermal resistance is the measurement of a material's ability to resist heat.

How can we change the Thermal properties?

One example of changing a material's thermal properties is increasing a ceramic's thermal resistance by increasing its porosity. Porosity is defined as fine holes or pores within a solid; the amount of these pores is expressed as a percentage of the total volume of the solid. The space shuttle tiles are an example of this kind of engineered change.

For further description of the shuttle tiles look at the Shuttle Tiles Case Study.