Durable icephobicity: A lubricant-infused nickel scaffold approach

The wind turbine blades are prone to icing phenomena under harsh and extreme environmental conditions, which significantly jeopardize the operational safety. In response to the critical challenges posed by the high energy consumption and low efficiency of current ice protection technology, the study aims to propose an optimized design for icephobic structure, leveraging the synergistic effect of phase change and the solid-ice interfacial mechanical behaviours. The proposed structure incorporates metallic scaffolds within polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) matrix infused with ice-depressing liquid. In this study, glycol and glycerol were selected as the ice-depressing liquids for this investigation. By leveraging the infused ice-depressing liquid, the concentration of existing hydroxyl groups on the layer surface increased, which effectively lowered the freezing point of supercooled droplets at the liquid-solid interfaces. Furthermore, the embedded metallic scaffolds play a dual role in enhancing both the mechanical durability and de-icing performance of the composite structure. The remarkable reduction in ice adhesion was effectively achieved through the enhanced micro-crack propagation behaviour and diminished fracture toughness at the solid-ice interfaces, primarily stemming from the enhanced elastic-plastic disparities between the various phases, which facilitate both crack initiation and propagation at the interface. Consequently, this process undermines interfacial bonding, thereby promoting a more effortless removal of ice. The newly developed icephobic structure exhibited impressive icephobicity and durability: the ice nucleation delay duration of supercooled water droplets at −20 °C on Ni scaffolds-PDMS infused with glycerol (NP-glycerol) has been prolonged to 179.7 ± 4.5 s, whereas the icing time of pure Al plate of equivalent thickness exhibited an icing time of only 9.0 ± 1.2 s. Furthermore, the ice adhesion strength of NP-glycerol remained remarkably stable at approximately 0.7 ± 0.1 kPa even after 50 icing/de-icing cycles, highlighting the exceptional durability of the fabricated structure. These findings suggest that the proposed icephobic structure, incorporating metallic scaffolds and ice-depressing liquid within PDMS matrix, offers a promising avenue for developing durable and effective anti-icing surfaces for diverse applications. Future research will focus on optimizing the scaffold geometry and investigating the influence of ice-depressing liquids to further enhance the icephobic performance.