Hydrophilic coating including DLC on substrate

• US 6,303,225 B1
• Filed: 05/24/2000
• Issued: 10/16/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 05/24/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Guardian Glass LLC (KOCH Industries Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Guardian Industries Corporation (KOCH Industries Incorporated)
• Inventors: Veerasamy, Vijayen S.
• Primary Examiner(s): TURNER, ARCHENE A
• Application Number:
  US09/577,337
• Time in Patent Office: 510 Days
• Field of Search: 428/408, 428/426, 428/704
• US Class Current: 428/408
• CPC Class Codes: B05D 5/083 involving the use of fluoropolymers
• CPC Class Codes: B08B 17/06 by giving articles subject to fouling a special shape or arrangement
• CPC Class Codes: B08B 17/065 the surface having a microscopic surface pattern to achieve the same effect as a lotus flower
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 17/10018 comprising only one glass sheet
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 17/1033 Laminated safety glass or glazing containing temporary protective coatings or layers
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 17/10577 Surface roughness
• CPC Class Codes: B60S 1/54 using gas, e.g. hot air
• CPC Class Codes: B60S 1/58 for rear windows
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/22 with other inorganic material C03C17/34, C03C17/44 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3441 comprising carbon, a carbide or oxycarbide
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/36 at least one coating being a metal
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3634 one layer at least containing carbon, a carbide or oxycarbide
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3644 the metal being silver
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3652 the coating stack containing at least one sacrificial layer to protect the metal from oxidation
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/366 Low-emissivity or solar control coatings
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3663 specially adapted for use as mirrors
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 2217/282 Carbides, silicides
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 2217/75 Hydrophilic and oleophilic coatings
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 2217/78 Coatings specially designed to be durable, e.g. scratch-resistant
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 2218/151 by vacuum evaporation
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 2218/31 : Pre-treatment
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 2218/326 : Nitriding
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 23/0075 : Cleaning of glass specially adapted to plate glass B08B11/00
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 3/076 : with 40% to 90% silica, by weight C03C3/045 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/30 : Self-sustaining carbon mass or layer with impregnant or other layer

Abstract

A substrate is coated with a hydrophilic layer(s) or coating(s) that includes, for example, amorphous carbon in a form of diamond-like carbon (DLC). In certain embodiments, the DLC inclusive layer may be doped with at least one polar inducing dopant (e.g., Boron, Nitrogen, and/or any other suitable polar inducing dopant) in order to make the layer more polar and thus more hydrophilic so as to have a lower contact angle θ (e.g., no greater than about 10 degrees in certain embodiments, and more preferably no greater than about 8 degrees).

Claims

1. A coated glass article comprising;

a glass substrate;

a hydrophilic layer including diamond-like carbon (DLC) with sp³ carbon-carbon bonds provided on said glass substrate; and

wherein said hydrophilic layer includes at least one dopant comprising boron (B) therein so as to cause the layer to have an initial contact angle θ

with a drop of water thereon of no greater than about 10 degrees.

2. The coated glass article of claim 1, wherein said hydrophilic layer includes said at least one dopant comprising boron (B) therein so as to cause the layer to have an initial contact angle θ

with a drop of water thereon of no greater than about 8 degrees.

3. The coated glass article of claim 2, wherein said hydrophilic layer includes said at least one dopant comprising boron (B) therein so as to cause the layer to have an initial contact angle θ

with a drop of water thereon of no greater than about 6 degrees.

4. The coated glass article of claim 1, wherein said layer has a surface energy γ

_C of at least about 24 mN/m.

5. The coated glass article of claim 1, wherein said layer has a surface energy γ

_C of at least about 26 mN/m.

6. The coated glass article of claim 1, wherein said layer has a surface energy γ

_C of at least about 28 mN/m, and wherein the refractive index of at least a portion of said layer is from about 1.5 to 1.7, and wherein the layer has a wettability W of at least about 700 mN/m.

7. The coated glass article of claim 1, wherein said layer comprises at least a diamond like carbon inclusive layer including the sp³ carbon-carbon bonds, wherein said at least one dopant includes said boron (B) and further includes nitrogen (N), and wherein said dopants cause bonds in said diamond like carbon inclusive layer to be more polar so as to lower the contact angle of the layer.

8. The coated glass article of claim 1, wherein said layer comprises at least a diamond like carbon inclusive layer including the sp³ carbon-carbon bonds that is in direct contact with said glass substrate, and wherein said at least one dopant is a polar inducing dopant that causes the DLC inclusive layer to be more polar and thus more hydrophilic.

9. The coated glass article of claim 1, wherein said at least one dopant includes at least one polar inducing dopant for making the layer more polar.

10. The coated glass article of claim 9, wherein said at least one dopant further includes Nitrogen.

11. The coated glass article of claim 10, wherein said at least one dopant comprising boron (B) is present in said hydrophilic layer in an atomic percentage no greater than about 10%.

12. The coated glass article of claim 10, wherein said boron (B) is present in said hydrophilic layer in an atomic percentage no greater than about 5%.

13. The coated glass article of claim 1, wherein said hydrophilic layer has an average hardness of at least about 20 GPa, and wherein an outermost 10 Angstrom thick portion of the layer includes from about 0.50 to 10% of said at least one dopant.

14. The coated glass article of claim 1, wherein the coated glass article comprises the following characteristics:

15. The coated glass article of claim 1, wherein no more than about 70% of the bonds in the hydrophilic layer are sp³ bonds, and wherein at least about 20% of the bonds in the layer are sp² type bonds.

22. The coated glass article of claim 1, wherein the hydrophilic layer is one of:

(i) in direct contact with said substrate, and (ii) on the substrate in a manner such that at least one intermediate layer is disposed between said substrate and said hydrophilic layer.

23. The coated glass article of claim 1, wherein said hydrophilic layer comprises, on an atomic percentage basis, from about 70-98% Carbon, from about 0-5% Nitrogen, and from about 0-5% Boron.

24. The coated glass article of claim 1, wherein said hydrophilic layer comprises from about 1-5% Boron.

25. The article of claim 1, wherein said hydrophillic layer comprises from about 65-75% C, from about 5-10% B, and from about 15-30% H.

16. A coated article comprising:

a substrate;

a hydrophilic coating or layer including diamond-like carbon (DLC) provided on said substrate; and

wherein said hydrophilic coating or layer has an average hardness of at least about 10 GPa and has a contact angle θ

with water of no greater than about 10 degrees.

17. The coated article of claim 16, wherein said hydrophilic coating or layer includes at least one polar inducing dopant therein for causing the coating or layer to be more polar, wherein said coating or layer has an average hardness of at least about 20 GPa, and wherein said coating or layer has an initial contact angle θ

with a sessile drop of water thereon of no greater than about 8 degrees.

18. The coated article of claim 17, wherein said initial contact angle is no greater than about 6 degrees.

19. The coated article of claim 17, wherein said at least one dopant comprises at least one of Nitrogen and Boron, and wherein said coating or layer comprises both sp² and sp³ carbon-carbon bonds, and wherein said substrate comprises one of glass and plastic.

20. The coated article of claim 16, wherein said hydrophilic coating or layer comprises, on an atomic percentage basis, from about 70-987% Carbon, from about 0-5% Nitrogen, and from about 0-5% Boron.

21. The coated article of claim 20, wherein said hydrophilic coating or layer comprises from about 1-5% of at least one of Nitrogen and Boron.

26. A coated article comprising:

a substrate; and

a layer comprising amorphous diamond-like carbon on said substrate, said layer including from about 1-10% boron (B) as a dopant, and having a surface energy γ

_C of at least about 26 mN/m.

27. The coated article of claim 26, wherein said layer has a surface energy γ

_C of at least about 28 mN/m and a contact angle θ

with a drop of water thereon of no greater than about 10 degrees.

28. A coated article comprising:

a substrate; and

a layer comprising diamond-like carbon on said substrate, said layer having a contact angle θ

with a drop of water thereon of no greater than about 10 degrees.

29. The coated article of claim 28, wherein said layer has a contact angle θ

with a drop of water thereon of no greater than about 6 degrees.