Dynamic Poly(dimethylsiloxane) Brush Coating Shows Even Better Antiscaling Capability than the Low-Surface-Energy Fluorocarbon Counterpart

Abstract

Scale formation is a significant problem in a wide range of industries, including water treatment, food processing, power plants, and oilfield production. While surface modification provides a promising methodology to address this challenge, it has generally been believed that surface coatings with the lowest surface energy, such as fluorocarbon coatings, are most suitable for antiscaling applications. In contrast to this general knowledge, here we show that a liquid-like coating featuring highly mobile linear poly­(dimethylsiloxane) (LPDMS) brush chains can bring an even better antiscaling performance than conventional perfluoroalkylsilane coatings, despite the fact that the former has much higher surface energy than the latter. We demonstrate that the LPDMS brush coating can more effectively inhibit heterogeneous nucleation of scale on a substrate compared with common perfluoroalkylsilane or alkylsilane coatings, and the dynamic liquid-like characteristic of the LPDMS brush coating is speculated to be responsible for its excellent nucleation inhibiting ability by reducing the affinity and effective interface interaction between the substrate and the scale nucleus. Our findings reveal the great prospect of using liquid-like coating to replace environmentally hazardous fluorine-containing organic ones as a green and cost-effective solution to address the scale problem with enhanced antiscaling performance.

Sustainable scale resistance on a bioinspired synergistic microspine coating with a collectible liquid barrier

“…Due to the multiple advantages such as good formability, and chemically inert and oil-absorbing properties, 41 polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) was firstly selected to prepare a microspine To ensure that all values are comparable, scale-resistant performance is evaluated by comparing scale mass gain or coverage percent on the tested surface with that on the control surface after testing in a scaling solution. [13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][33][34][35][36][37][38] coating with a hexagonal array and rough microgrooves (Fig. S2b, ESI †).…”

“…For example, the superhydrophobic PFSC-EDTA coating can improve scale resistance by 88.6% under static conditions. 21 Compared with them, [13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][33][34][35][36][37][38] our BLOCK coating apparently surpasses the others in terms of scale-resistant performance and longevity (ca. 98% reduction vs stainless steel for 840 h).…”

“…(d) Summary of scale-resistant performance on different surfaces: the red region is from this work and others represent the values in reported literature. The data were classified by the combination of test conditions, surface wettability and control surface.To ensure that all values are comparable, scale-resistant performance is evaluated by comparing scale mass gain or coverage percent on the tested surface with that on the control surface after testing in a scaling solution [13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][33][34][35][36][37][38]. Scale bars, 200 mm (b); 20 mm (c).…”

Imparting scalephobicity with rational microtexturing of soft materials

“…Previous work on surface engineering has focused on developing rigid antifouling surfaces by altering the surface energy of the materials (18)(19)(20)(21) and reducing the roughness (22) to eliminate fouling. There has been a growing interest in interfacial materials and compliant coatings that aim to enhance the antifouling properties by using the materials's inherent barriers (23)(24)(25)(26)(27)(28)(29)(30)(31)(32)(33)(34).…”

Durable Liquid- and Solid-Repellent Elastomeric Coatings Infused with Partially Crosslinked Lubricants

“…A few examples of surfaces that can repel a broad range of solid and liquid foulants have been developed recently. − These surfaces are designed to form a molecularly smooth surface using liquid lubricants or liquid-like polymer brushes, which can replace the solid–foulant interface with a liquid–foulant interface. However, these surfaces typically suffer from poor mechanical durability. , For example, slippery liquid-infused surfaces can be rendered dysfunctional by shear flow or mechanical abrasion. , The poor mechanical durability of such surfaces can be attributed to the loss of lubricant surface coverage during abrasion and the softness of the intermediate textured layer.…”