Anti-icing and hydrophobic performance of chemically modified waterborne polyurethane hybrid coatings

The problem of ice is evident in many industries, such as aviation, transport and energy. The accumulation of ice not only causes monetary losses, but also threatens safety. In the aviation industry, ice build-up leads to changes in aerodynamics as well as damage to parts and sensors. This in turn contributes to emergency landings, flight cancellations, the need to replace parts, and increased energy consumption. Ice build-up can be prevented by using active or passive systems. Due to the cost, time-consuming nature and environmental disadvantages of using active systems, the development of anti-icing coatings is becoming increasingly popular. In this work, an air spraying method was used to fabricate the sample. A waterborne polyurethane paint was applied to aluminum substrates. Modification of these coatings with functionalized organosilicon compounds was done. Compounds with the same core were used. The organosilicon compounds contained functional groups that direct hydro- and icephobic properties of the surface. Roughness, wettability (contact angle and roll-off angle) and ice adhesion force measurements were taken. Lower roll-off angle values were obtained for each of the chemical modifications. The reduction was more than 75%. On this basis, it can be concluded that the hydrophobic properties of the coatings were improved. A decrease in the ice adhesion force values was obtained, which demonstrated the favorable effect of the icephobic properties of the coatings. This reduction for two of the types of modification was more than 50% compared to the reference sample. The results of the roughness, wettability and ice adhesion were also linked, showing what relationships exist between them.

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Opracowanie rekordu ze środków MNiSW, umowa nr POPUL/SP/0154/2024/02 w ramach programu "Społeczna odpowiedzialność nauki II" - moduł: Popularyzacja nauki (2025).