Anti-adhering, anti-soiling coatings
Hydrophobic and oleophobic surfaces with anti-soiling, self-cleaning properties find a wide usage, often in combination with additional properties, such as transparency, hardness, chemical inertness or thermal stability.
For this field of application, the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technical Science and Applied Material Research (IFAM0 has developed diverse coating systems on the basis of plasma polymerization, that do justice to these extended requirements (surface energy <24 MN/m). Varying materials, such as metals, glasses and polymers, can be equipped with these coatings, whereby the property profile can be extremely variably adjusted. Additionally, further functions, such as i.e. corrosion protection, UV-protection or scratch protection can be integrated into the layer.
By the development of these coatings, the chief attention on the application has been located in the domestic area, i.e. baking trays, pans or ceramic cooking fields. For this, low surface energy layers are required with anti-adhering properties against fatty and caramelizing aliments with simultaneous high temperature permanence and mechanical stability up to the temperature range from 300-400 °C, as well as high chemical inertness and permanence.
Further application areas are in the textile and building industries (water repellent woven cloth, shear wool and foamed material), as well as in the polymer industry (demoulding layers).
Water drop on a surface being coated by plasma-polymerization
Within the bounds of its function as service provider in technology transfer, IFAM offers its resources for the processing of the above-mentioned industrial questions up to series production. Our service comprises consultation, process development, sampling and industrial installation through pilot terotechnology.
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