Technology
Development

The Icelip project (of which Icemart^® is the commercial brand) is a follow-on project from the Icemart^® project funded via Innovate UK through the Material & Manufacturing Stage 1 programme.

The project focussed on the development of a passive anti-icing technology. The innovation in the Icemart^® project was to bond 2 or more functional groups to the surfaces of silica nano-particles. Ice-repellent functional groups were placed alongside active functional groups which bond to the resin matrix, cementing the silica nano-particles into the resin for a tough, durable coating. During the course of the Icemart^® project advances were made in the development of a coating technology. Analysis of Ice Wind Tunnel tests undertaken at GKN Aerospace demonstrated a clear and tangible breakthrough in anti- icing capability.

Icemart^® technology, stems from TWI’s patent WO2007060387 (commercialised as Vitolane^®-manufacturing process of functionalised SiO2 macro-molecules improving polymer coatings hardness; TWI-LSBU’s filed patent (WO2017093759A1) -functionalisation process of larger SiO2 particles (30-500 nm), allowing nanoparticles high-loading (up to 50%) into resins with no aggregation or increase in viscosity and more possibilities for multi-functionalisation (due to larger surface areas).

The technology uses water-repellent multi-functionalised silica nano-particles bonded strongly to the coating polymer matrix.

Icemart®
Materials By Design