New anti-condensation coating developed at MIT

March 21, 2013 By MaterialsViews staff Leave a Comment

Preventing glass from fogging or frosting up is a longstanding challenge with myriad applications: eyeglasses,
cameras, microscopes, mirrors and refrigerated displays, to name but a few. While there have been many
advances in meeting this challenge, so far there has been no systematic way of testing different coatings and
materials to see how effectively they work under real-world conditions.
Now, a team of MIT researchers has developed such a testing method, and used it to find a coating that
outperforms others not only in preventing foggy buildups, but also in maintaining good optical properties without
distortion.
When people want to tackle the fogging process, caused when microscopic water droplets condense on a cold
surface and scatter light, the common way of doing it is to build a surface thats so hydrophilic water-loving
that the water spreads out into a sheet, says Rubner, who is also director of MITs Center for Materials Science
and Engineering. So even though the waters there, it doesnt scatter the light.
But there can be a problem with that approach: In applications where its important to get an undistorted view,
such as cameras or other optical systems, the view can be quite distorted if the thickness of the layer of water
varies considerably.
In addition, if the surface is cold, the water on the surface can begin to freeze, forming a frost layer that scatters
light, Rubner says, adding: If youre going to have a sheet of water, how do you prevent it from freezing?
For that purpose, what you really need is a coating that can absorb a lot of water in a form that cannot freeze.
Indeed, in many applications it would be useful to have both hydrophobic and hydrophilic traits in the same
material. Thats what the team has now done, and theyve coined a term to describe this hybrid property: Zwitter
wettability.
Zwitter, Rubner explains, is a German word for hybrid, used in a number of chemistry terms to describe
something that carries two opposite properties at once. In this case, it describes a surface that has the ability to
behave as both hydrophobic (to water droplets) and hydrophilic (to gas-phase water molecules).
The surface is made by a process called layer-by-layer deposition. In this case, alternating layers of two different
polymers poly(vinyl alcohol) and poly(acrylic acid) are deposited on a glass surface. The magic of what we
do is nanoscale processing, Rubner explains: producing the layers so as to control their properties almost down
to the level of individual molecules.
This production process appears relatively easy and inexpensive to carry out on large scales. These are
common polymers, Rubner says. Theyre well-known and cheap, but brought together in a unique way.
To test the effectiveness of this material, and that of many other alternatives, the team devised a set of extreme
tests. For example, they kept samples of the material at minus 20 degrees Celsius for an hour, then exposed
them to a very humid environment. While untreated glass, or glass treated with conventional hydrophilic or
hydrophobic coatings, quickly develops a layer of frost following such treatment, glass with the new treatment
remains clear. However, it still appears to be hydrophobic in the presence of large water droplets.
To measure its performance, Lee says, the researchers photographed the glass slides under carefully controlled
conditions. We developed a protocol [that] allows us to detect how good one coating is in comparison with
another, he says.
Previous testing typically measured the light transmitted through the glass after exposure to humidity, but failed to
measure the level of image distortion caused by water condensation. We came up with a way to measure them
not just for transmission, but also distortion, Lee says.
While the new coating outperforms others, it does have one drawback: Its vanishingly thin, so could be
vulnerable to aggressive cleaning or mechanical challenges. For this reason, it may not be useful for applications
where it is exposed to harsh environments or to excessive wiping.

Another limitation is that the new coating only prevents small amounts of frost buildup; it wouldnt work where
theres a continuous source of cold water, such as for deicing an airplane wing, Rubner says.
Still, that leaves many possible uses: the inside of automobile windshields, safe from both weather and
windshield wipers; the inside of grocery stores refrigerator cases; and optical systems used in research or in
photography. The coating could also be useful on the inner surfaces of double-pane windows, which can become
fogged if even a small leak allows outside air into the sealed space.
Joseph Schlenoff, a professor of polymer science at Florida State University who was not involved in this work,
says, Everyone knows how inconvenient, or even dangerous, it is to have a cold window or lens fog up when
water condenses on it. The MIT group has devised a practical and effective method of combatting the fogging
problem using a new ultrathin polymer film.
Schlenoff adds, Both the materials themselves and the techniques used to explore their properties are highly
innovative. These MIT engineers are literally helping us to see technology more clearly.

SGG REDUCES EXTERNAL CONDENSATION NOT

PERFORMANCE WITH LAUNCH OF VIEWCLEAR
Saint-Gobain Glass has taken another major step forward in glass coating technology with the launch
of SGG Viewclear offering strong anti-condensation protection and best in class WERS performance.

SGG Viewclear is an innovative coating deposited through state of the art magnetron coating sputter

technology. The coating is designed to keep the external glass pane temperature above the dew point, helping
to prevent condensation from forming. The result is a high-performance glazing solution that maintains
excellent visibility through the window by significantly reducing the number of days affected by condensation.

SGG Viewclear has a unique position in the market having been designed so that fabricators and installers can

sell the benefits of an anti-condensation solution but also maintain strong thermal performance. This is
achieved by minimising the solar heat degradation arising from a coating on face 1 of the IGU.

Craig Dodsworth, Head of Marketing at Saint-Gobain Glass said: As legislation has evolved, the demands on
thermal performance of windows continues to increase. This, combined with innovations such as triple glazing,
present the industry with a challenge how to deliver windows with exceptional thermal performance without
compromising the view impacted by the build of condensation on the exterior pane of glass. Consumers are
often frustrated by the lack of visibility which can occur during the Spring and Autumn months. Now
with SGG Viewclear, there is a unique solution.

SGG Viewclear is positioned on the external surface of an insulating glass unit, either double or triple, where it
can be combined with a high-performance SGGPlanitherm Low-E coating to achieve superior thermal

performance. As well as giving homeowners a clear view through their window, it also maximises the entry of
natural daylight and solar heat gain with unrivalled neutrality in aesthetics. The product can be used in a wide

range of domestic and commercial applications and is currently available in 4mm thickness, with thicker
variants available on request.
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