For winters later in the 21st century, forget the rock salt. A University of Pittsburgh team has developed a nanotech coating to prevent ice build-up that may one day be applied to wintry roads. Their research is published in the November 3 edition of the scientific journal Langmuir.
The paper, written by Pitt doctoral student Liangliang Cao, reported work conducted in the lab of Di Gao, a chemical and petroleum engineering professor in Pitt’s Swanson School of Engineering. Gao was one of the co-authors of the paper, which presents the first evidence of anti-icing properties for a burgeoning class of water repellents, including the Pitt coating, known as superhydrophobic coatings. The silicon particles used in the experiments force water into the air pockets between particles that are less than 50 nanometers in size. But Gao cautions that the findings are not ready for commercial prime time. Anti-icing is only a speculative application for the coating. No experimental evidence yet exists, he says. So what we do is find the scale of the surface topography of the coating that determines anti-icing properties.
Gao conducted tests in freezing rain that demonstrated that the coating, when applied to aluminum plates, repelled ice build-up. Real-time video of the test shows the ice sliding from the surface.
Gao says that applying thin films of the new material over large areas may be cost-effective. Cost is not an issue. When compared with other construction materials, like concrete, the cost is low. Its been used for antennas, but for airplanes and roads, we need different kind of tests. The commercial process might take a pretty long time, but its promising.
Source: Di Gao, University of Pittsburgh
Writer: Chris OToole