Moisture Condensation Management in Automotive Headlamp Using Super Hydrophilic Cross-Linked Polymer Composites

This work aims to develop potential super hydrophilic crosslinked smart polymer composites and condensation management device (CMD) for condensation control in automotive headlamps. Condensation and moisture buildup in the automotive headlamp decrease the visibility to the driver. The superhydrophilic crosslinked polymer composites were prepared with the combination of polyacrylamide-based hydrogels and hygroscopic lithium bromide desiccants. In this work, we have utilized various desiccants such as bromide, chloride and silica gel which is blended together with the polyacrylamide-based hydrogel. The prepared various compositional smart composites were characterized for chemical, thermal and morphological analysis using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), Polarized Optical Microscopy (POM) & Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), respectively. The developed super hydrophilic crosslinked polymer composites were kept into the designed condensation device and placed into the headlamp assembly. The effective composite composition showed 70-80 % water absorption after 24 h. The various composition of the composites was prepared and experiment were carried out. By using 50-70 % of super moisture absorber material into the polymer matrix higher rate of water absorption is achieved. The prepared super hydrophilic crosslinked polymer composites showed potential water absorption which can be useful for condensation management in headlamps.