Environmentally adapted slippery-superhydrophobic switchable interfaces for anti-icing

Abstract

Numerous state-of-the-art anti-icing surfaces have been developed to avoid undesired icing. However, they generally only work in the single static icing occasion. Under dynamic disturbances, the unstable interfacial states could fail easily, leading to the loss of icephobicity. The impalement of air interfaces on superhydrophobic surfaces and liquids captured by lubricant interfaces are two most known failure mechanisms. How to address these problems and develop a surface with adaptability to changeable harsh environments is of great challenge but of high value. Here we analyze the effects of structural sizes on surface resistance forces and slippery durability and propose a structural design method to balance their relationship. Adopting the optimized structures, we fabricate an environmentally adapted slippery-superhydrophobic switchable surface, which reversibly switches interface states to maintain low adhesion in different environments. We demonstrate that the surfaces show excellent slippery anti-icing properties in static environments and overcome impalement issues. Even in extreme low-temperature environments, a photothermal-assisted droplet self-dislodging is realized. Confronting dynamic disturbances, the superhydrophobic interfaces are spontaneously activated with the broadened anti-water-impact ability (up to 200 kPa). A series of experiments confirm the long-term anti-icing, switchability and universality of our constructed surfaces, which could accelerate practical anti-icing applications in many related fields.