Study of SiO₂ aerogel/CNTs photothermal de-icing coating for wind turbine blades

Ice on the surface of wind turbine blades may result in power production losses and unsafe operations. An effective technological solution to the ice issue is coating de-icing. This study first constructed SiO₂ aerogel/CNTs (carbon nanotube) coating with photothermal de-icing by incorporating photothermal nanoparticles into the created nanoporous structure. The coating structure examined by SEM and EDS analysis demonstrates that CNT particles can be well captured by the three-dimensional nanostructure of SiO₂ aerogel and form a stable symbiotic skeleton. After that, we examined how the quantity of CNT doping affected the coating's surface morphology and photothermal properties. The findings demonstrated that the C-6 coating made from 0.6% CNTs performed best. Utilizing the photothermal effect of CNTs, it exhibited a steady rate of temperature increase and reached the target temperature of 153.4°C in 561 s upon near-infrared light (808 nm) irradiation. According to the results of experiments testing the photothermal performance, mechanical/chemical stability, and applicability of the coating, the coating has the advantages of being lightweight, provides quick de-icing, high stability, and simple production. This study not only increases the viability of using coating de-icing technology on wind turbine blades but also offers creative solutions to scientific investigation in the area of coating de-icing.