Superhydrophobic RTV silicone rubber insulator coatings

On wet days, environmental contamination of outdoor insulation surfaces can reduce the reliability of electrical transmission systems and lead to flashover and arcing over the entire insulator. The use of superhydrophobic coatings would resolve this problem due to their self-cleaning effect. Water droplets can pick up dirt particles and remove contamination from the surfaces of insulators. This paper reports on a study to make a superhydrophobic RTV silicone rubber coating that has contact angles of higher than 145. and good UV durability. The Inclined Plane Test, water durability test and adhesion test are presented to show the effectiveness of this coating and the best formulations. The results of tracking and erosion resistance test (Inclined Plane Test) showed that formulations with at least 35 wt% ATH can be used for superhydrophobic RTV insulator coatings. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.