Study on surface hydrophobicity of silicone rubber insulator with grating structure based on nanosecond pulse laser processing

As the insulation equipment of the power grid, the original contact angle of the silicone rubber of the main material of the composite insulator is about 110°, which does not meet the superhydrophobic standard. To improve the hydrophobicity, a biomimetic superhydrophobic structure, namely the grating micro/nano composite structure of rice leaf, was textured on silicone rubber surface using nanosecond pulsed laser, and the influence of laser technological parameters on the grating microstructure and wetting performance was investigated. Moreover, the chemical elements and functional groups on the surface of silicone rubber before and after laser treatment were tested with an energy dispersive spectrometer and Fourier transform infrared spectroscope. The results show that after laser processing, the grating microstructure and micro / nano particles on the surface of silicone rubber increase the average roughness from 0.6537 μm to 2.5191 μm, and the maximum contact angle is 154.25°. The elemental species on the surface of silicone rubber remain unchanged, but the overall content of carbon and oxygen elements increases, while that of silicon element declines. In summary, the grating microstructure prepared by nanosecond laser can effectively improve the hydrophobicity of the silicone rubber surface, thereby improving the performance of the composite insulator.