Preparation, characterisation, and anti-icing properties of superhydrophobic coatings on asphalt mixture

ABSTRACT

In order to reduce the safety risk caused by icing on asphalt pavement, we propose a new method to prepare a superhydrophobic coating (SHC) on asphalt mixture surfaces for anti-icing purposes. The nano-SiO₂ particles modified by a coupling agent (KH550), and oxysilane were sprayed on the asphalt mixture surfaces to prepare the SHC. Fourier transform infra-red spectra prove that Si-O-Si and C–H are the main components of the superhydrophobic materials, and the coupling agent has a good cross-linking effect. SEM images reveal that SHCs have a micro nano-binary composite structure, and show excellent super-hydrophobicity. Moreover, when the spraying amount of the SHC with nano-SiO₂ (30 nm), KH550 (4 ml), MTMS (6 ml) and DMDS (4 ml) on asphalt mixture was 40 ml, the contact angle presented the highest value of 154.2°. The anti-icing tests confirm that the SHCs can effectively delay the freezing time of surface water and decrease the adhesion force between the ice and the pavement. The simulated rainfall test verifies that the superhydrophobic properties of SHCs become worse after water washing. After 2 h of droplet impact, the contact angle of the SHC surface on asphalt mixture is still close to 150°, and SHCs still have good hydrophobic properties.

KEYWORDS:

• Superhydrophobic coating
• asphalt mixture
• preparation
• characterization
• anti-icing
• micromorphology

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Science and Technology Research Programme of Chongqing Municipal Education Commission (grant number KJQN201800704), the Graduate Education Innovation Fund Project of Chongqing Jiaotong University (2019s0150), and the Science and Technology Project of the Department of Transportation of Hebei Province (QC2018-3) are gratefully acknowledged.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

All data, models, and code generated or used during the study appear in the submitted article.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Science and Technology Research Program of Chongqing Municipal Education Commission: [Grant Number No. KJQN201800704]; Science and Technology Project of the Department of Transportation of Hebei Province: [Grant Number QC2018-3]; Graduate Education Innovation Fund Project of Chongqing Jiaotong University: [Grant Number 2019s0150].