Fabrication of robust and durable slippery anti-icing coating on textured superhydrophobic aluminum surfaces with infused silicone oil

Abstract

A facile and durable biomimetic slippery anti-icing coating was prepared by infusing nontoxic and inexpensive lubricating silicone oil into superhydrophobic dual-scale micro/nano-structured (MNS) aluminum surfaces. Superhydrophobic surfaces were fabricated via the combination of simple chemical etching and anodization, followed by surface modification with poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS). Compared to superhydrophobic coatings, silicone oil-infused polydimethylsiloxane (SOIP) coating displays a low ice-adhesion strength of 22 ± 5 kPa on the structured surface. Moreover, the SOIP coating sustained low ice-adhesion strength (35 ± 15 kPa) even when the temperature was lowered to −25 °C. The MNS-surface exhibits excellent durability, showing a low ice-adhesion (108 kPa) after 20 icing/de-icing cycles and long-term icephobicity (55 ± 13 kPa) after four months' exposure in ambient environment. We also examined the influence of surface morphology on ice-adhesion strength, the SOIP modified MNS-surface displays better anti-icing properties compared to a nano-structured (NS) surface under harsh conditions; icing/deicing and abrasion cycles. The MNS-surface act as reservoir to hold the excess amount of oil, thus reducing the loss of lubricant during icing/deicing cycles. The proposed technique is very simple and cost-effective, and most importantly it can be applied for production of durable and scalable anti-icing coatings for various practical applications.