Icephobic properties of anti-wetting coatings for aeronautical applications

Ice accretion on surfaces exposed to supercooled drops is a major issue in several fields, especially for aircraft. The severity and hazardousness of this phenomenon largely depends on the environmental conditions met by the surface. Currently, active ice protection systems are applied to limit the risks related to ice accretion on aircraft, but intense efforts are devoted to the development of passive ice protection systems to overcome their limitations. Anti-wetting materials have been explored as potential icephobic surfaces, with the Slippery, Liquid-Infused Porous Surfaces approach (SLIPS) being one of the most innovative and intriguing possible solutions. However, the literature lacks a proper characterization of the behavior of SLIPS in icing wind tunnel tests that simulate the different icing conditions. In our work, we report the fabrication of ceramic-based coatings as per the SLIPS approach, utilizing two different ceramic porous matrixes and several infused liquids; we also assess the ability of these coatings to reduce ice accretion in icing wind tunnel tests in both glaze and rime icing regimes, as well as their properties in terms of reduced ice adhesion. Observing the remarkable icephobic behavior displayed by these materials in both types of tests, SLIPS gain significant consideration as candidate passive ice protection systems for aeronautical applications.