New anti icing surface that performed other state of the technology with the lowest reported ice for

The formation of ice on surfaces negatively impacts many aspects of our lives, from the operation of cars, planes, trains, and ocean-going vessels, to roads, power lines, transmission towers, turbines, wind mills, and roofs of all types of structures. Thus, the problems caused by ice formation produces difficulties in most major sectors of society, spanning transportation, power generation and transmission, and home and office buildings. As a consequence of the major effects ice has on various applications, researchers have developed a new field of study known as icephobicity.

Icephobic surfaces are surfaces that prevent or delay the formation of ice and are most importantly characterized by their median nucleation temperature and average ice nucleation delay time.

By inspiration of the Nepenthes pitcher plant, slippery liquid infused porous surfaces (SLIPS) have been developed. These are wet surfaces that prevent the pinning of freezing droplets, and reduce ice adhesion strength. When ice forms on these surfaces, ice adhesion can be significantly reduced if liquid is trapped in surface textures as a lubricating layer. However, it has been shown that fluid can deplete gradually during deicing and SLIPS can fail to provide lubrication under extended operation. The most studied icephobic surfaces are superhydrophobic surfaces. The micro/nano scale topography of these superhydrophobic surfaces allows for air to be trapped and prevents the wetting of the surface (Cassie state). Thus, due to less contact area between the solid and liquid than in flat surfaces, significant freezing delays can be observed in superhydrophobic surfaces. These advantages are overshadowed by the fact that all of these surfaces consist of micro/nano texturing, which are prone to irreversible mechanical damage and imperfections from the fabrication process.

Instead of using liquid-infused micro/nanostructures, we propose to use an external magnetic field to secure ferrofluid on a substrate. The magnetized ferrofluid will prevent the droplet from touching a cold substrate, thus, dramatically increasing the nucleation delay time and achieving reducing the median nucleation temperature. As a consequence of coating a surface with oil-based ferrofluid, the surface becomes slippery and upon ice formation we see a complete negation of pinning. Droplet mobility is unhindered by the ferrofluid, meaning almost any degree of surface tilt or just the slightest shear stress will cause the droplet to roll off the surface.

The low interfacial energy of magnetic liquid–liquid interfaces opens a new path to develop surfaces with exceptional icephobicity, unprecedented low ice adhesion strength (2 pa), negligible friction to water and ice motion, self-healing characteristics and high shear flow stability. These surfaces (MAGSS) provide a defect-free surface for ice nucleation and thereby lower the ice formation to close to homogenous nucleation limit. These surfaces promise a new paradigm for development of icephobic surfaces in aviation technologies, ocean-going vessels, power transmission lines and wind turbines in extreme environments.

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