Thermal paste
Thermal paste fills the tiny gaps between a chip and its heatsink to transfer heat better. It wears out over time and must be replaced.
Between a chip and the heatsink sitting on it, there are always tiny gaps filled with air, which conducts heat very poorly. Thermal paste, a grease loaded with conductive particles, fills these gaps. It ensures continuous thermal contact between the chip and the metal, whether on an ASIC hashboard, a processor or a graphics card.
Its performance is measured by its thermal conductivity, in watts per meter-kelvin (W/m·K): the higher the figure, the better heat passes through. Over time and with heat, the paste dries out, cracks or migrates. Chip temperatures then rise, the machine lowers its frequency or shuts the board down for safety, and the hashrate drops. On a machine running day and night, this is one of the classic causes of lost performance.
Replacing the paste is part of routine maintenance and of many repairs. Choose a paste that does not conduct electricity, to avoid any short circuit, and that is made for high temperatures. Carefully remove the old paste, apply a thin, even layer, then refit the heatsink without trapping air. On a hashboard, the job takes care and method: if in doubt, it is better to leave it to a workshop.
We offer a high-performance thermal paste for ASIC hashboards, and our workshop in France handles maintenance and repair of machines.