Anti-soiling effect of porous SiO2 coatings prepared by sol–gel processing

摘要: Thin films being composed of a nanoporous SiO2 network and silica nanoparticles were prepared on glass substrates by sol–gel processing. The surfaces combine anti-reflective (AR) anti-soiling properties as demonstrated in laboratory testing long term outdoor exposure. Films characterized scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It is shown that both, the structure matrix well particle density, contribute to this effect, influence relative humidity (RH) during dust exposure was investigated. Due their generally improved solar transmittance dust-repellant coatings are believed have vast potential for many photovoltaic thermal applications.