Reduction of Ice Adhesion on Nanostructured and Nanoscale Slippery Surfaces

Ice nucleation and accretion on structural surfaces are a source of major concerns for safety and operations in many industries such as aviation and renewable energy sectors. Common approaches to tackle these involve the uses of active methods such as heating, ultrasonic or chemical methods, or passive methods such as surface coatings. In this study, we explored the ice adhesion properties of slippery coated substrates by measuring shear forces which were required to remove a glaze ice block on the coated substrates. Among the studied nanostructured and nanoscale surfaces (e.g., a superhydrophobic coating, a fluoro-polymer coating, and a PDMS chain coating), the PDMS chain coated surface, with its flexible polymer brushes and liquid-like structure, significantly reduced the ice adhesion on both glass and silicon surfaces. Further studies on the PDMS chain coating on the roughened substrates also demonstrated its low ice adhesion. The reduction in ice adhesion is attributed to the flexible nature of brush-like structures of PDMS chains, allowing ice to be easily detached.