Delaying frost formation by controlling surface chemistry of ZnO-coated 304 stainless steel surfaces

Because 304 stainless steel is extensively used in everyday life, surface icing frost would cause annoyance; thus, the research on 304 stainless steel with frost inhibition is quite important. The superhydrophobic surface antifrost is energy-saving and ecologically beneficial, but it also avoids typical defrosting, which reduces energy consumption, pollution, and other difficulties. As a result, the investigation of superhydrophobic surface frost inhibition performance offers promising practical potential. However, traditional manufacturing procedures for superhydrophobic surfaces have proven to be difficult and expensive, rendering them unsuitable for mass production. In this paper, a simple hydrothermal and sol-gel method were used to prepare the superhydrophobic surface wettability of 304 stainless steel and determine the frosting behavior of superhydrophobic ZnO, hydrophobic ZnO, hydrophilic ZnO, and 304 stainless steel sheets at low ambient temperatures. The frost resistance of superhydrophobic ZnO was studied. As a result, this study provides a novel idea for rationally designing frostresistant superhydrophobic surfaces at low ambient temperatures.