Development of a composite structured surface for durable anti-hydrate and enhancing thermal conductivity

Abstract

The durability and thermal conductivity of the superhydrophobic surfaces are of great challenge in the application. In this work, a composite structured (CS) surface was developed with a water contact angle of 150°. The sintered porous copper was designed to provide mechanical stability and interconnected heat-conducting backbones. The superhydrophobic nanoparticle was designed to provide water repellency. The adhesion force test indicated that the CS surface has predominant anti-hydrate ability. The hydrate adhesion force of CS surface was only 0.01 mN/m. After decomposition, the CS surface has 92% smaller retained water mass than bare surface, indicating that it can be circulated to prevent adhesion. Additionally, the CS surface with copper size < 50 µm achieved a high thermal conductivity of 81.23 W ⋅m−1⋅K−1. In the case of thick coating (100 µm), the CS with copper size < 50 µm is predicted to ensure an overall thermal conductivity decrease of < 20%. Under the same wear condition, CS surface has a longer life than individual microstructure or nanostructure. The research can provide a guideline for design of heat exchanger coatings to achieve a lasting prevention of increase in system energy consumption.