Enhanced Anti‐Icing Performance of Superhydrophobic PFA Coatings via Response Surface Methodology Optimization

ABSTRACT Under cold and humid conditions, ice formation on wind turbine blades can significantly reduce aerodynamic efficiency, decrease energy output, and accelerate mechanical wear. In this paper, the response surface methodology (RSM) was adopted to optimize the coating, and the effects of epoxy resin concentration, curing agent ratio, PFA nanoparticle concentration, and spraying frequency on the delay ice factor (DIF) were systematically investigated. A quadratic regression model was established to evaluate the importance of each factor. The surface morphology of the optimal coating was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and its dynamic anti‐icing performance was evaluated under a −10°C inclined surface condition. The results show that the PFA content has the greatest influence on the DIF, followed by the curing agent ratio, spraying frequency, and epoxy resin content. The optimized parameters (0.019 g/mL epoxy resin, 5.35 μL/mL curing agent, 0.092 g/mL PFA, and 7 sprays) achieved the maximum DIF value of 116.9. The SEM results indicated that the micro‐pores were uniformly distributed (with an average size of 3.25 μm), effectively inhibiting droplet penetration and heterogeneous ice nucleation. The anti‐icing test showed that the anti‐icing inhibition rate was 97.1%, and the droplets exhibited rapid rebound behavior with an extremely short contact time.