Nanotechnology Now - Press Release: Rice de-icer gains anti-icing properties: Dual-function, graphene-based material good for aircraft, extreme environments

Home > Press > Rice de-icer gains anti-icing properties: Dual-function, graphene-based material good for aircraft, extreme environments

Rice University scientists have modified their graphene-based de-icer to resist the formation of ice well below the freezing point and added superhydrophobic capabilities. The robust film is intended for use in extreme environments as well as on aircraft, power lines and ships.

Graphic courtesy of the Tour Group/Rice University

Abstract:
Rice University scientists have advanced their graphene-based de-icer to serve a dual purpose. The new material still melts ice from wings and wires when conditions get too cold. But if the air is above 7 degrees Fahrenheit, ice won't form at all.

Rice de-icer gains anti-icing properties: Dual-function, graphene-based material good for aircraft, extreme environments

Houston, TX | Posted on May 23rd, 2016

The Rice lab of chemist James Tour gave its de-icer superhydrophobic (water-repelling) capabilities that passively prevent water from freezing above 7 degrees. The tough film that forms when the de-icer is sprayed on a surface is made of atom-thin graphene nanoribbons that are conductive, so the material can also be heated with electricity to melt ice and snow in colder conditions.

The material can be spray-coated, making it suitable for large applications like aircraft, power lines, radar domes and ships, according to the researchers. The study was published this month in the American Chemical Society journal ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces.

"We've learned to make an ice-resistant material for milder conditions in which heating isn't even necessary, but having the option is useful," Tour said. "What we now have is a very thin, robust coating that can keep large areas free of ice and snow in a wide range of conditions."

Tour, lead authors Tuo Wang, a Rice graduate student, and Yonghao Zheng, a Rice postdoctoral researcher, and their colleagues tested the film on glass and plastic.

Materials are superhydrophobic if they have a water-contact angle larger than 150 degrees. The term refers to the angle at which the surface of the water meets the surface of the material. The greater the beading, the higher the angle. An angle of 0 degrees is basically a puddle, while a maximum angle of 180 degrees defines a sphere just touching the surface.

The Rice films use graphene nanoribbons modified with a fluorine compound to enhance their hydrophobicity. They found that nanoribbons modified with longer perfluorinated chains resulted in films with a higher contact angle, suggesting that the films are tunable for particular conditions, Tour said.

Warming test surfaces to room temperature and cooling again had no effect on the film's properties, he said.

The researchers discovered that below 7 degrees, water would condense within the structure's pores, causing the surface to lose both its superhydrophobic and ice-phobic properties. At that point, applying at least 12 volts of electricity warmed them enough to retain its repellant properties.

Applying 40 volts to the film brought it to room temperature, even if the ambient temperature was 25 degrees below zero. Ice allowed to form at that temperature melted after 90 seconds of resistive heating.

The researchers found that while effective, the de-icing mode did not remove water completely, as some remained trapped in the pores between linked nanoribbon bundles. Adding a lubricant with a low melting point (minus 61 degrees F) to the film made the surface slippery, sped de-icing and saved energy.

Co-authors of the paper are Rice alumnus Abdul-Rahman Raji, now a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Cambridge, and Rice graduate students Yilun Li and William Sikkema. Tour is the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry as well as a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering.

The Air Force Office of Scientific Research supported the research.

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About Rice University
Located on a 300-acre forested campus in Houston, Rice University is consistently ranked among the nation’s top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has highly respected schools of Architecture, Business, Continuing Studies, Engineering, Humanities, Music, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences and is home to the Baker Institute for Public Policy. With 3,910 undergraduates and 2,809 graduate students, Rice’s undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio is 6-to-1. Its residential college system builds close-knit communities and lifelong friendships, just one reason why Rice is ranked No. 1 for best quality of life and for lots of race/class interaction by the Princeton Review. Rice is also rated as a best value among private universities by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance. To read “What they’re saying about Rice,” go to tinyurl.com/RiceUniversityoverview.

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