A polyester-silica anti-condensation surface with anti-fouling property

In this study, we fabricated a sprayable polyester-SiO2 anti-condensation coating. The coating exhibited superhydrophobicity and condensation resistance at various sub-cooled temperatures. We found that the number of nucleation sites is greatly related to surface energy and dynamic growth of droplets. Besides, different droplet-jumping events were observed on the superhydrophobic surfaces under different relative humidity (RH). Droplet-jumping events of 50 times were observed under 48% RH in an 11-min cooling period, which is five-times higher than those under other relative humidity conditions. To avoid contamination triggered nucleation events, anti-fouling property, a key factor of an anti-condensation surface, was also studied. Oil repellence and contamination tests verified the good anti-fouling property of our coating. The resistance of our coating to scratches has been investigated by nano-indentation, cross-cut adhesion, and sandpaper abrasion tests. Compared with other reported anti-condensation coatings, our coating proved to be better than previously reported anti-condensation coatings. Our work opens significant research and market opportunities for the widely used polyester coatings in anti-condensation applications.