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Liquid metal on an aluminum heat sink graphics card causes this
The use of liquid metal for processor cooling is a popular method among some firms and users, as demonstrated by the PlayStation 5. However, it is not suitable for all situations because liquid metal conducts electricity and heat, which can cause damage to equipment if it spreads to certain areas.
Recently, YouTuber Der8auer received a NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 graphics card from a subscriber that had liquid metal applied to it and was experiencing high temperatures above 100 °C (video). Further investigation revealed that the issues were concentrated in the cooling system and there were no other flaws present on the video card.
One of the key considerations when using liquid metal is that it should not be used as a thermal paste on aluminum-containing components. This is because liquid metals, such as gallium, can react with aluminum and form an alloy that can make the aluminum brittle and ultimately cause damage to the hardware. In the case presented, the GPU had an aluminum cooler and the liquid metal had formed an alloy that was damaging the equipment.
Despite this, he was able to recover the subscriber's NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060. He cleaned the GPU and checked that the chip was not damaged before replacing the aluminum cooler. After cleaning and scraping off the damaged portion, he used a router to repair the base and the video card resumed normal operation at normal temperatures.
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vestibule
Senior Member
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Senior Member
Posts: 1181
Joined: 2014-04-21
#6096402 Posted on: 01/25/2023 11:04 AM
Now, there's a thing.
Now, there's a thing.
Vtech
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Senior Member
Posts: 134
Joined: 2009-02-12
#6096407 Posted on: 01/25/2023 11:27 AM
He didn't replace the cooler, he repaired it.
He didn't replace the cooler, he repaired it.
XP-200
Senior Member
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Senior Member
Posts: 6009
Joined: 2003-04-05
#6096431 Posted on: 01/25/2023 01:35 PM
I wonder just how many casual PC builders or people taking their consoles apart and applying this liquid metal are aware that it is not only great at conducting heat, but also electricity, a reason i have never felt the need to use it over the standard normal thermal paste, and which thankfully has saved me a few times over the years when i put too much on and the heatsink to mobo connecters were like the metal press from the first terminator movie. lol
I wonder just how many casual PC builders or people taking their consoles apart and applying this liquid metal are aware that it is not only great at conducting heat, but also electricity, a reason i have never felt the need to use it over the standard normal thermal paste, and which thankfully has saved me a few times over the years when i put too much on and the heatsink to mobo connecters were like the metal press from the first terminator movie. lol
Ormy
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Member
Posts: 64
Joined: 2022-02-01
#6096447 Posted on: 01/25/2023 02:27 PM
Liquid metal TIM (thermal interface material) contains Indium, Gallium or both. These metals will literally dissolve Aluminium. See here:
Nickel, Iron, Steel, Copper, and any plastic or glass is safe from this effect, Aluminium is NOT.
His benchmark videos and other technical stuff is still useful IMO but his personal commentary has taken a dive into the childish in the last year or two I agree.
I mean it should be blindingly obvious that metal conducts electricity but you're right, many people are just stupid and don't think these things through. I love using liquid metal though, I've always found it gives better temps, and there's very little variability in quality, i.e. the cheap liquid metal performs just as good as the expensive stuff. Whereas to get decent quality thermal paste you have to spend a lot, that's my experience anyway.
Liquid metal is perfectly safe to use if you protect exposed electriconic components nearby. So before I apply any liquid metal, I borrow the clear-coat nail polish from the wife and give all the surface mount components in the vicinity two thick coats. That way even if the liquid metal spills/escapes a little it can't do any damage.
I remember back in the good old days of Pentium 3 processors, liquid metal TIM wasn't really a thing and enthusiast thermal pastes were crazy expensive, so I used to use copper grease, dirt cheap and worked well enough. Don't try this at home though.
Liquid metal TIM (thermal interface material) contains Indium, Gallium or both. These metals will literally dissolve Aluminium. See here:
Nickel, Iron, Steel, Copper, and any plastic or glass is safe from this effect, Aluminium is NOT.
I unfollowed GN a little while ago, Steve is becoming really childish and mainly just trolls away now. Havn't felt like i missed anything of great value by not watching their videos anymore.
His benchmark videos and other technical stuff is still useful IMO but his personal commentary has taken a dive into the childish in the last year or two I agree.
I wonder just how many casual PC builders or people taking their consoles apart and applying this liquid metal are aware that it is not only great at conducting heat, but also electricity, a reason i have never felt the need to use it over the standard normal thermal paste, and which thankfully has saved me a few times over the years when i put too much on and the heatsink to mobo connecters were like the metal press from the first terminator movie. lol
I mean it should be blindingly obvious that metal conducts electricity but you're right, many people are just stupid and don't think these things through. I love using liquid metal though, I've always found it gives better temps, and there's very little variability in quality, i.e. the cheap liquid metal performs just as good as the expensive stuff. Whereas to get decent quality thermal paste you have to spend a lot, that's my experience anyway.
Liquid metal is perfectly safe to use if you protect exposed electriconic components nearby. So before I apply any liquid metal, I borrow the clear-coat nail polish from the wife and give all the surface mount components in the vicinity two thick coats. That way even if the liquid metal spills/escapes a little it can't do any damage.
I remember back in the good old days of Pentium 3 processors, liquid metal TIM wasn't really a thing and enthusiast thermal pastes were crazy expensive, so I used to use copper grease, dirt cheap and worked well enough. Don't try this at home though.
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I really love Der8auer's channel, he's such an honest person with his reviews as well.
I unfollowed GN a little while ago, Steve is becoming really childish and mainly just trolls away now. Havn't felt like i missed anything of great value by not watching their videos anymore.