Solar Deicing Nanocoatings Adaptive to Overhead Power Lines

• Published in: Advanced functional materials Vol. 32; no. 25
• Main Authors: Li, Yang, Ma, Wei, Kwon, Ye Seul, Li, Weihong, Yao, Shuhuai, Huang, Baoling
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.06.2022
• Subjects: Cables; Clean energy; Defrosting; Deicing; Electric communication systems; Electric power transmission; Electricity distribution; Hydrophobicity; Ice accumulation; Ice removal; Icephobicity; Low temperature; Materials science; nanocoating; Nanoparticles; photo‐thermal; Power lines; Snow; Snow accumulation; superhydrophobic; System effectiveness; Titanium nitride
• ISSN: 1616-301X; 1616-3028
• DOI: 10.1002/adfm.202113297

In frigid winter, the ice and snow built‐up on high‐voltage overhead power lines may seriously risk the reliability of electric power transmission and telecommunication systems. Green technologies for power line deicing that can effectively remove the accumulated ice or snow on the cables in a gentle way are highly desired but technically challenging due to the complex cable surfaces. Herein, this work reports a scalable solar‐thermal icephobic nanocoating compatible with both flat and complex curved surfaces. The spray‐coated nanocoating comprises a titanium nitride nanoparticle layer as a low‐emissivity photo‐thermal medium and dual‐scale silica particles as a water‐repellent layer even at low temperatures. Enabled by the collective effects of high‐efficiency solar‐thermal conversion and temperature‐insensitive superhydrophobicity, the nanocoating realizes effective deicing/defrosting on power lines at frigid temperatures down to −15 °C. The versatility of this coating and its compatibility with mass‐production processes render passive solar‐driven deicing technologies promising for practical applications on most outdoor exposed surfaces. Solution‐processed solar deicing nanocoatings are developed, compatible with both flat and complex curved surfaces, including power line cables. Due to the strong solar absorption (90%), ultralow thermal emissivity of 6%, and superhydrophobicity (contact angle of 173°), the coatings quickly remove thick ice and frost on cables at −15 °C under solar illumination.