Research on low temperature performance of ZnO/SiO2 composite superhydrophobic paper mulch

Abstract

Paper mulch has the advantages of simple process, low production cost and strong degradability, but it is still a great challenge to prepare paper mulch with excellent water resistance and light transmittance. In this paper, through a simple physical brushing method, Zinc oxide (ZnO) solution and silica (SiO2) solution were brushed on the surface of paper mulch film respectively, and ZnO/SiO2 composite superhydrophobic paper mulch film (CSPMF) with micro-nano rough structure was constructed. The microstructure of original paper mulch film (OPMF) and ZnO/SiO2 CSPMF was studied by scanning electron microscope (SEM), and the superhydrophobic surface elements were analyzed by energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS). The contact angle (CA) and rolling angle (RA) of two kinds of sample surfaces are measured by contact angle meter. The static CA and RA of ZnO/SiO2 CSPMF were 160 ± 0.4° and 3 ± 0.3°, respectively. The self-cleaning behavior of soil simulated dust environment was tested on the surface of OPMF and ZnO/SiO2 CSPMF respectively. The horizontal bounce performance and tilt bounce performance of the superhydrophobic surface were tested by high-speed camera. In addition, frost experiments and delayed icing experiments were carried out. The results show that ZnO/SiO2 CSPMF has good self-cleaning performance, bouncing performance and delayed icing performance.

Keywords

• Paper mulch
• Superhydrophobic
• Low temperature environment
• Self-cleaning
• Bouncing
• Delayed icing