Ever been annoyed at yourself for touching and thus ruining the perfect display of your phone or even worse, tablet? Such bad markings can really spoil your TV viewing experience. Luckily, oleophobic coatings have come to the rescue in solving this techno-conundrum. Nowadays, these coatings are indispensable for the performance of modern electronic devices by enabling them to resist oil and grease. This article takes a closer look at this scientific practice in an effort to understand the make-up, application and benefits of as it relates to consumer goods--specifically phones.
What Are Oleophobic Coatings?
Oleophobic comes from the Greek words, "oleo" (oil) and 'phobic' (fear). Oleophobic coatings are basically substances that inherently repel and resist oil, much as hydrophobic or water-repellent treatments repel humidity. This is accomplished through the creation of surfaces that possess dual hydrophobic (water-repelling) and oleophobic properties.
Composition and Structure
Oleophobic coatings can be made from different materials such as:
Fluorinated compounds: These form a protective superficial coating, often coming from perfluorinated alkyl acids (PFAAs) which repel water and oil alike.
Siloxanes: Additional durability and resistance to degradation (these compounds have silicon covalently bonded to oxygen atoms)
Surfactant: These support in enhancing the levelling and bonding with substrate of coating.
A thin and even layer of the coating is uniformly coated onto the surface of the display on a device. Well containing many tiny peaks and valleys, the microscopic structure of the coating traps air molecules in its web. As a result, oil and grease will bead up instead of making contact with the surface.
Application Process
These oleophobic coatings can actually wear off in time with use and typical rigours of life stressing the components on all sides. One common method is vapour deposition, where the coating is applied in a vacuum chamber. A source material is heated which leads to its vaporising, and this gas then gets deposited on the surface of your device.
Oleophobic Coatings → Benefits
Several major benefits are found by consumers when using an oleophobic coating:
Less smudges and fingerprints: The main benefit to these coatings is that they help disguise the marks left behind by greasy finger touchscreens. This not only makes the device look better but also improves viewing.
Better screen clarity: Due to these coatings, smudges and fingerprints do not get formed giving a better brightness of the screen and ensuring colours stay true making images sharp.
Official durability: the oleophobic coatings can also prevent scratch and abrasion to a certain extent, which keeps your device's display in good condition for longer periods of time.
Less mess: Even when smudges or fingerprints do happen, they're also generally easier to wipe off surfaces with oleophobic coatings. Usually, you can clean the screen just by wiping it with a microfiber cloth.
Environmental Considerations
However, although an oleophobic coating can provide several advantages, there are concerns about the environmental effects of a few essential compounds in its preparation such as perfluorinated alkyl acids (PFAAs). Several of these compounds are pollutants and/or a health concern. Consequently, more effort is made to substitute regular oleophobic coatings for something more eco-friendly and sustainable.
Conclusion
The oleophobic coatings have been one of the most significant technological advancements in electronics devices. These coatings act as oil and grease barriers that fight against ruining your screen with residue, or smudges. Although environmental concerns are being addressed regarding the types of material used in certain coatings, oleophobic coatings offer substantial improvements to user experience and longevity for all electrical devices.
