Deicing Mechanisms of Two-Phase Skeleton/Gel Composites with Tunable Surface Moduli

Developing durable ice-phobic materials is essential for minimizing ice-related hazards in aerospace, transportation, and energy infrastructure systems. In this study, two types of porous skeleton-gel composites with distinct surface moduli were fabricated, i.e., a low-modulus polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) gel-infused high-modulus porous polyurethane (denoted as GIP-PU) and a low-modulus PDMS gel-infused high-modulus porous iron-nickel (denoted as GIP-IN). The deicing performance of all samples was comparatively investigated under static and dynamic freezing conditions. Notably, GIP-PU1 with a pore size of 200 μm showed the lowest ice adhesion strength of 1.9 kPa under dynamic freezing conditions, which is 1 order of magnitude lower than that under static icing conditions. Moreover, GIP-PU1 maintained ice adhesion strengths below 20 kPa even after mechanical durability assessments and chemical resistance tests, demonstrating exceptional mechanical and chemical stability. Mechanistic analysis of the deicing process revealed that specimens with smaller pore sizes promoted the formation of stress concentration points, triggering a higher density of microcracks during ice fracture propagation, as evidenced by in situ observations, thereby lowering ice adhesion strength.