Nahum T., Mitra S., Panwar A., Barry C., Dodiuk H., Kenig S., Mead J.
UMass Lowell, US
Keywords: durability, icephobic, silica NPs, superhydrophobic
Recent studies about the application of superhydrophobic surfaces for anti-ice properties have found that ice adhesion strength is reduced significantly compared to bare aluminum surfaces, but these surfaces lack durability. In this work, bottom up cost-effective and durable coatings were created using silica nanoparticles for roughness control, flourosilane for hydrophobic chemistry, and three polymers: urethane acrylate, ethyl 2-cyanoacrylate, and epoxy. The polymer-to-silica nanoparticles ratio was studied to obtain the optimized coating’s roughness for all the three polymers. The effect of substrate wetting behavior on the superhydrophobic characteristics of the coatings was also investigated. Morphology was examined using scanning electron microscopy and contact profilometry, whereas durability was evaluated using the tape test (ASTM D3359). Conditioning these new coatings under freezing conditions for different periods of time produced measured contact angles of > 160° and sliding angles of < 1°, indicating that the coatings were icephobic.
Journal: TechConnect Briefs
Volume: 1, Advanced Materials: TechConnect Briefs 2015
Published: June 14, 2015
Pages: 529 - 532
Industry sector: Advanced Materials & Manufacturing
Topic: Coatings, Surfaces & Membranes
ISBN: 978-1-4987-4727-1