> you need lower-energy atoms for higher-energy ones to rub against to carry away the excess.

Wat? Conductive and convective heat loss are certainly things, but heat radiates away too, and that is exactly how the systems you describe perform. The fact that the hull doesn't radiate much heat away itself isn't suprising, but all things being equal, the system still dies cold. Put the other way: if heat was truly the problem, is there any outcome where ISS melts, short of re-entry?