In order to eliminate the adverse effects of low-temperature icing on the surfaces of aerospace vehicles

power transmission cables

wind turbine blades

etc.

and to enhance the self-cleaning capability of the absorbing coatings on the surfaces of aerospace vehicles

modified hierarchical SiO

2

/PU superhydrophobic coating was produced by compounding nano-silicon dioxide (n-SiO

2

) and micron-silicon dioxide (m-SiO

2

) fillers modified by silane coupling agent with polyurethane (PU) matrix in a 6∶1 mass ratio. The results

show that the better dispersion of m-SiO

2

in the PU matrix improves the stability of the coating and effectively eliminates the cracking of the coating due to the agglomeration of n-SiO

2

. The n-SiO2 and m-SiO

2

fillers work together on the surface of the coating to build up a dense hierarchical micro-bulge hydrophobic structure

which can trap more air to increase the air–liquid contact area of water droplets. The water contact angle of the hierarchical modified SiO

2

/PU superhydrophobic coating can reach 158.56°±1.08° and has good self-cleaning ability and wear resistance. In addition

the excellent wavetransparent property of the hierarchical modified SiO

2

/PU superhydrophobic coating does not adversely affect the performance of the absorbing coating. It is shown that the prepared hierarchical modified SiO

2

/PU superhydrophobic coating is an ideal protective coating for wave-absorbing materials.