Superhydrophobicity and anti-icing of CF/PEEK composite surface with hierarchy structure

In this study, a durable, reusable, effective and large-area molding method was proposed to fabricate hierarchical structures on the CF/PEEK composite surface. The hierarchical structures were fabricated using a combination of sandblasting and anodizing treatments on the metal surface. Subsequently, a hot-pressing process was adopted for producing structures that matched the metal templates. The rough surface was modified by (Heptadecafluoro-1,1,2,2-tetradecyl)trimethoxysilane with low surface energy to obtain superhydrophobicity. Scanning electron microscopy was utilized to observe the surface morphologies and structure. The chemical composition and roughness were analyzed by FT-IR spectroscopy and the laser microscopy, respectively. Wettability was characterized through contact angle measuring instruments, and static and dynamic sliding contact angles were obtained to be 158.23° and 8.38°, respectively. After the abrasion test, the CF/PEEK composite surface still maintained reasonable mechanical stability. Comparing with the untreated sample, CF/PEEK superhydrophobic surface exhibited excellent anti-icing performance with freezing time increasing from 54 to 514 s at − 20° and icing adhesion strength reducing to 30.5 kPa. Although the fabrication of composite surface with water repellency presented here is useful for anti-icing, it can also be applied in other applications that require superhydrophobic surfaces.