Magnesium Aminoclay (MgAC) as an Additive in Anti-Icing Mixture of Propylene Glycol Applied to Railway Electrical Wires: A Preliminary Study

Abstract

Ice accumulation on the surface of railway electrical wires can cause significant problems in the winter season. Different anti-icing liquids have been used to prevent the formation of ice on different surface substrates. The most common anti-icing liquids are ethylene glycol mixtures. Recently, propylene glycol, due to its lesser toxicity, has been considered as an alternative anti-icing agent. However, propylene glycol mixtures have some limitations, in that their degradation can lead to corrosion of the metal substrate. As detailed in the literature, (3-aminopropyl)-triethoxysilane (APTES), the precursor of magnesium aminoclay (MgAC), has been used to protect metal substrates from corrosion. In the present study we examined the potential of MgAC as an APTES-alternative additive in propylene glycol mixtures. The results showed that the anti-icing properties of the propylene glycol mixtures were maintained in the presence of MgAC (at 0.1, 0.5, and 1.0 wt.% concentrations). Furthermore, MgAC's potential as a thickening agent was shown in the increased viscosity of the propylene glycol/MgAC mixtures relative to the propylene glycol mixtures. The addition of MgAC also rendered the propylene glycol mixtures more hydrophilic. However, MgAC addition also led to corrosion due to the excess amounts of amine groups in the anti-icing solution. In this paper, the corrosion mechanism of MgAC is explained in the paper. In the future, the anti-icing and anti-corrosion properties of propylene glycol/MgAC mixtures at low concentrations (<0.1 wt.%) should be more fully investigated.