Innovative thermal insulation coatings
Thermal insulation coatings based on microporous particles from Pickering emulsion polymerisation have been decribes in a recent study.
During the study, microporous polystyrene spheres (MPS) were successfully prepared by Pickering emulsion polymerisation . The emulsions were stabilised by amino functionalised silica nanoparticles and the mesoporous structure was induced by iso-octane. In order to verify that the prepared MPS have a porous structure, the morphology and pore size were studied by SEM and BET, and near infrared light reflectivity and visible light transmittance of the coatings with microspheres in epoxy soybean oil acrylic resin coating was also measured. And through the thermal conductivity and heat transfer rate test, the thermal insulation properties of MPS filled coating was systematically studied.
Improving the thermal insulation performance
Compared with traditional hollow glass microbeads, the coating prepared by adding MPS has higher near infrared reflectivity, better visible light transmittance and comparable thermal insulation ability.
As the researchers tell, the results show that the introduction of MPS will make the coating have a low thermal conductivity and high light and heat shielding performance, thereby improving the thermal insulation performance of the coating. The MPS prepared can serve as a novel functional filler for coatings of thermal insulation application, which can save energy consumption in a range of fields.
The study has been published in Progress in Organic Coatings, Volume 151, February 2021.
