Effective MXene Superhydrophobic Coating with Passive Anti-Icing and Active Photothermal Deicing

Ice accumulation on the surface of outdoor equipment can cause serious energy consumption, economic losses, and safety issues. Photothermal superhydrophobic coatings with passive anti-icing, and active deicing properties are promising for ice removal. However, repeated icing/deicing processes can damage the structure of photothermal superhydrophobic coatings, resulting in the loss of their superhydrophobic anti-icing properties. This study developed an environmentally friendly, free of fluorinated hydrophobic modifiers photothermal superhydrophobic composite coating. The EP-PDMS/HDTMS@MXene coatings with hierarchical micronanostructures were fabricated by a one-step spraying using Hexadecyltrimethoxysilane (HDTMS) for surface grafting modification of MXene (Ti3C2Tx) and the adhesive system of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)/epoxy resin (EP). The coating exhibits excellent superhydrophobicity (water contact angle = 153.2°, sliding angle = 5°) and prolongs the freezing time of ice to 9 min, which is 33 times longer than a bare aluminum sheet. Furthermore, due to the photothermal effect of MXene, the coating surface temperature rapidly increases to 74.5 °C within 6 min under simulated 1 sun irradiation. Consequently, the frost or ice layers on the coating surface melted rapidly. Moreover, the coating exhibits excellent mechanical durability, chemical stability, and self-cleaning properties. The coating’s unique passive/active synergistic anti-icing mechanism offers an environmentally friendly strategy for anti-icing protection of critical infrastructure in low-temperature environments.