Preparation and characterization of anti-stain self-cleaning coating on ceramic

The sedimentation of various pollution on the ceramic surfaces decreases their apparent quality and increases their contaminating effect. While self-cleaning coatings help to solve this problem. In this research, two layers of silica particles with different particle sizes and one layer of perfluorodecyltriethoxysilane are deposited on ceramic surfaces in a micro/nano setting to impose a hierarchical structure and low surface free energy resulting in a self-cleaning characteristic. Different settings of layers and concentration of the main constituents are applied and the samples are analyzed by dynamic light scattering (DLS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) analyses as well as contact angle measurement tests. The highest static contact angle and the lowest sliding angle of water drop on the coated surface are 116° and 19°, respectively. Also, the static contact angle of water on the coated ceramics exceeds to 100° after immersion in the water for two days and the coated surfaces show improved resistance against stains. Moreover, the experimental results are statistically analyzed and numerically optimized.