Enhanced surfaces, coatings, and related methods
A method of modifying a coating material includes applying a fluid including a population of particles to a wet coating material disposed on a substrate. The method also includes drying the wet coating material so as to give rise to a coated article, where the particles are at least partially embedded in a surface of the dried coating material. The particles can be metallic nanowires, and a loading of the metallic nanowires in the dried coating material can be above an electric percolation threshold.
1. A method of producing a coated article, comprising:
applying a fluid and a population of metallic nanowires to a wet coating material disposed on a transparent polymeric substrate, wherein:
the transparent polymeric substrate comprises a thermoset polymer, and
the wet coating material comprises a thermoplastic polymer selected from the group consisting of polycarbonate and polyacrylate;
removing at least a portion of the fluid after the metallic nanowires are applied to the wet coating material and before the wet coating material is dried, wherein the removing at least a portion of the fluid is under a condition of applying an electric field to maintain one or more positions of the metallic nanowires within the wet coating material; and
drying the wet coating material so as to give rise to a coated article, wherein:
the metallic nanowires are at least partially embedded in a surface of the dried coating material,
a loading of the metallic nanowires in the dried coating material is above an electric percolation threshold,
neighboring ones of the metallic nanowires are in electronic contact with one another, and
the coated article is a transparent conducting electrode.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the wet coating material comprises poly(methyl methacrylate).
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least some of the metallic nanowires are suspended in the fluid during application.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluid softens the wet coating material, thereby facilitating embedding of the metallic nanowires into the surface.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein a velocity causes the metallic nanowires in the fluid, when applied to the wet coating material, to impact the wet coating material, thereby facilitating embedding of the metallic nanowires into the surface.
6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising disposing the population of metallic nanowires in the fluid by mixing, sonicating, shaking, vibrating, flowing, stirring, agitating, or any combination thereof.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluid comprises a gas, a liquid, a supercritical fluid, or a combination thereof.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluid comprises a solvent, an aqueous solution, an ionic solution, a non-polar solvent, an organic solvent, a polar solvent, an aprotic solvent, a protic solvent, an inorganic solvent, an ionic fluid, a polar aprotic solvent, a polar protic solvent, a solution comprising a salt, or any combination thereof.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluid comprises a salt, a surfactant, a stabilizer, or any combination thereof.
10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluid comprises a volatile component.
11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluid is removed by heating, flash-heating, distillation, evaporation, suction, vacuum, or any combination thereof.
12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluid comprises at least one agent capable of at least partially inhibiting agglomeration of the metallic nanowires.
13. The method of claim 1 , further comprising fusing at least some of the metallic nanowires together.
14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluid is characterized as being a solvent to the wet coating material.
15. The method of claim 1 , wherein applying the fluid comprises spraying, electrostatic spraying, spin casting, dipping, painting, dripping, brushing, immersing, flowing, exposing, pouring, rolling, curtaining, wiping, printing, pipetting, ink-jet printing, or any combination thereof.
16. The method of claim 1 , further comprising moving at least one of the transparent polymeric substrate or the fluid relative to the other.
17. The method of claim 1 , wherein the metallic nanowires include at least one metallic nanowire that is partially embedded in the dried coating material to an extent of not more than 80% of a diameter of the metallic nanowire.
18. The method of claim 1 , wherein the metallic nanowires include at least one metallic nanowire that is partially embedded in the dried coating material to an extent of not more than 50% of a diameter of the metallic nanowire.
19. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the metallic nanowires comprises silver.
20. The method of claim 1 , wherein the metallic nanowires are, on average, embedded to an extent of not more than 100% of a characteristic diameter of the metallic nanowires.
21. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the metallic nanowires is fully embedded below the surface of the dried coating material.
22. The method of claim 1 , wherein applying the electric field causes the metallic nanowires to embed into the wet coating material.
23. The method of claim 1 , wherein applying the fluid to the wet coating material comprises contacting a roller against the wet coating material such that the metallic nanowires are at least partially embedded in the wet coating material.
24. The method of claim 1 , wherein the embedded metallic nanowires provide electronic communication with an environment exterior to the dried coating material.
25. The method of claim 1 , wherein the metallic nanowires are, on average, embedded to an extent of more than 100% of a characteristic diameter of the metallic nanowires but localized near the surface of the dried coating material.
26. The method of claim 1 , further comprising forming an electrically conductive contact in electronic communication with at least some of the metallic nanowires.
27. The method of claim 1 , further comprising depositing an electrically conductive material over the transparent polymeric substrate to form a contact, wherein the contact is in electronic communication with at least some of the metallic nanowires.
28. A method of producing a coated article, comprising:
applying a fluid and a population of metallic nanowires to a wet coating material disposed on a substrate;
removing at least a portion of the fluid after the metallic nanowires are applied to the wet coating material and before the wet coating material is dried, wherein the removing at least a portion of the fluid is under a condition of applying an electric field to maintain one or more positions of the metallic nanowires within the wet coating material; and
drying the wet coating material so as to give rise to a coated article, wherein:
the metallic nanowires are at least partially embedded in a surface of the dried coating material,
a loading of the metallic nanowires in the dried coating material is above an electric percolation threshold,
neighboring ones of the metallic nanowires are in electronic contact with one another, and
the coated article is a transparent conducting electrode.
29. The method of claim 28 , wherein the fluid softens the wet coating material, thereby facilitating embedding of the metallic nanowires into the surface.
30. The method of claim 29 , wherein a velocity causes the metallic nanowires in the fluid, when applied to the wet coating material, to impact the wet coating material, thereby facilitating embedding of the metallic nanowires into the surface.
31. The method of claim 28 , wherein the fluid comprises a gas, a liquid, a supercritical fluid, or a combination thereof.
32. The method of claim 28 , wherein the fluid is removed by heating, flash-heating, distillation, evaporation, suction, vacuum, or any combination thereof.
33. A method of producing a coated article, comprising:
applying a fluid and a population of metallic nanowires to a wet coating material disposed on a substrate;
removing at least a portion of the fluid after the metallic nanowires are applied to the wet coating material and before the wet coating material is dried, wherein the removing at least a portion of the fluid is under a condition of applying an gradient to drive the metallic nanowires into the wet coating material; and
drying the wet coating material so as to give rise to a coated article, wherein:
the metallic nanowires are at least partially embedded in a surface of the dried coating material,
a loading of the metallic nanowires in the dried coating material is above an electric percolation threshold,
neighboring ones of the metallic nanowires are in electronic contact with one another, and
the coated article is a transparent conducting electrode.
34. The method of claim 33 , wherein the gradient further maintains one or more positions of the metallic nanowires relative to the wet coating material.
35. The method of claim 33 , wherein the gradient is an electric field.