Nanoparticle Diffusion and Fixation for the Preparation of Durable Transparent Superhydrophobic Coatings

Due to the size limitation of nanostructures in transparent superhydrophobic (TS) coatings, it is a formidable challenge to construct a TS coating with acceptable mechanical durability. The matrix should connect with nanoparticles and the substrate with more chemical bonds to provide the essential mechanical robustness of the coating layer. In this study, methylacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane (MEMO) that has three Si–OCH 3 groups was polymerized to PMEMO and used as an “ideal” adhesive for the fabrication of durable transparent superhydrophobic (DTS) coatings. Hydrophobic SiO 2 nanoparticles were fixed through diffusion into the swollen PMEMO network to avoid the micro-roughness caused by agglomeration. The light transmission of the glass slide after coating with PMEMO/SiO 2 was 89.24%. The coating layer maintained its superhydrophobicity with the impact resistance of 160 g of sand and 4.6 m/s water jet for 360 s and heat treatment under 200 °C. The green, non-toxic, and non-fluorinated coating preparation method is universal and scalable, which has promising and large-scale application prospects.