I-Corps: Super-slick Coatings for the Handling of Viscous Fluids in Extreme Environments

这个i-Corps项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力来自于预期任何处理粘性液体的行业所产生的能源消耗和清洁支出的减少。该项目的重点技术是一种既防水又防油、耐高温的薄膜涂层。这种涂料有望广泛应用于油轮、轨道车辆和用于运输粘性燃料的卡车。这种涂料将在降低清洁和维修成本方面为最终用户带来可观的好处，同时提高能源效率，减少运输过程中丢弃的液体数量。这项技术还与添加剂制造的喷嘴设计、核废料处理以及特种化学品的机器人处理有关。在所有这些应用中，涂层将允许输送粘性流体，而不会粘连和污染表面，并具有保护底层基材免受腐蚀的额外好处。对社会的好处将包括更有效的燃料利用和减少工人暴露在潜在危险物质中。这个i-Corps项目基于研究，开发出了耐热和高质地的涂层，可以很容易地滑动水和粘性油滴。自然界有大量没有被水滴润湿的表面(例如荷叶或鲨鱼皮)；然而，没有被低表面张力液体(如油)润湿的表面在自然界中是不存在的。该项目的基础是在实验室测试中不被油或水浸湿的涂层。这些表面的极端非润湿性源于超薄金属或陶瓷薄膜内跨越多个长度尺度的耐热三维织构的创建，这导致了一个相互连接的被困气囊网络。将具有本质低润湿性的分子嫁接到多孔膜的表面上，可产生不被水或油润湿的延伸表面。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project derives from the anticipated reduction of energy consumption and cleaning expenditures incurred by any industry dealing with the handling of viscous liquids. The technology that is the focus of this project is a thin-film coating that is repellant to both water and oil and can withstand high temperatures. Such coatings are expected to find broad applicability in oil tankers, railcars, and trucks used to transport viscous fuels. The coatings will bring end-users considerable benefits in terms of reduced cleaning and repair costs while enabling improved energy efficiency and reducing the volume of fluids discarded during transportation. The technology is further of relevance to the design of nozzles for additive manufacturing, the processing of nuclear waste streams, and the robotic handling of specialty chemicals. In all of these applications, the coating will allow for viscous fluids to be delivered without adhesion and contamination of surfaces and with the added benefit of protecting the underlying substrate from corrosion. Benefits to society will include more efficient fuel utilization and reduced exposure of workers to potentially hazardous substances.This I-Corps project is based on research that has led to the development of thermally robust and highly textured coatings that readily glide both water and viscous oil droplets. Nature has an abundance of surfaces that are not wetted by water droplets (e.g., lotus leaves or shark skin); however, surfaces that are not wetted by low-surface-tension liquids, such as oils, do not exist in nature. This project is based on coatings that in laboratory tests are not wetted by either oil or water. The extreme non-wettability of these surfaces derives from the creation of thermally robust three-dimensional texturation spanning multiple length scales within ultra-thin metal or ceramic films, which gives rise to an interconnected network of trapped air pockets. Grafting molecules with intrinsically low wettability onto the surfaces of porous films yields extended surfaces that are non-wettable by water or oil.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.