Transcript
Over the past sixty plus years, applying deicing agents to prevent ice build-up on aircraft wings has consumed millions of man-hours and billions of dollars. Fortunately, it's likely that this expense will soon become a thing of the past. All too often it has resulted in delays, far more expensive than the labor and materials involved.
New research presented recently at the 251st National Meeting and Exposition of the American Chemical Society, revealed a new liquid-secreting materials technology called self-lubricating organogels, (SLUGs). The SLUGs technology has a host of formulations and applications, including a gel form that can be encapsulated in a film coating on the surface of a wing or other device.
This liquid-like substance can make wings and other surfaces so slippery that ice cannot adhere. The slick substance is secreted from the film on the wing's surface as temperatures drop below freezing and then retreats back into the film as temperatures rise.
The gel and the liquid-repellent substance are held in a matrix of silicone resin. The mix is cured and applied to a surface as a nearly transparent and solid film coating.
The team examined the anti-icing properties of several types of organogels under tests at various temperatures. The discovery of the material's thermo-responsive secretion properties was an unexpected surprise. Since the release of the liquid gradually starts when temperatures fall below freezing, ice can still form, but it cannot adhere to the surface and it slips off. Once the temperature rises above freezing, the liquids return back to the film.
There are also potential applications for SLUGs beyond aircraft. These include antifouling coatings in packaging, paints, ship bottoms, metal molds and more.
The research is currently focusing on increasing the transparency of the SLUG's coating.
|
