Plant leaves delay ice formation
A research work reveals that kale leaves have special surface microstructures delaying the ice formation initiation making them good candidates for designing ice-repellent coatings.
Ice adhesion and accumulation are well known to cause serious problems for different structures such as wind turbines, power transmission and distribution systems, and aircraft. Developing coatings that can resist icing can solve many challenges in various areas of industry.
Superhydrophobic for cleaning the leaves
This work was inspired by nature and ice resistivity and superhydrophobicity of plants leaves. Kale is a winter plant with superhydrophobic behaviour, which is normally known as advantage for cleaning the leaves. In-depth experimental analyses, IR thermography, contact angle measurements, and scanning electron microscopy of the leaves were performed to discover how different plants can prevent icing and further find an optimal design for an artificial ice-repellent coating.
The study is published in: Journal of Coatings Technology and Research, September 2017, Volume 14, Issue 5.
