Effective thermal conductivity of a compressed Li2TiO3 pebble bed

In order to study combined phenomena of thermal and mechanical properties of Li2TiO3 pebble bed, simultaneous measurement of effective thermal conductivity and stress–strain property was conducted. Effective thermal conductivity of the bed was measured under compressive load up to 10 MPa at temperatures ranging from 673 to 973 K. At all temperatures, increases of effective thermal conductivity due to the compressive deformation were confirmed. When successive loads, heating–cooling or compression, worked on the bed, effective thermal conductivity increased according to promotion of the compressive deformation.