Self-Adaptive Thermoregulating Coating for All-Weather Thermal Management

Abstract

Practical thermal management of functional interfaces usually requires coordinated solar absorption and radiative heat dissipation under variable environmental conditions. Yet, conventional photothermal systems maintain static spectral responses and fail to adapt to dynamic thermal demands. Here, we develop a self-adaptive thermoregulating functional interface that enables bidirectional thermal control through coupled spectral modulation and thermal energy storage. By integrating dual functional fillers into a porous scaffold, a poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene)-based composite coating is constructed on a flexible substrate, comprising thermochromic microcapsules (TM) and SiO2-shelled phase change microcapsules (Pn@SiO2). TM dynamically modulates solar absorption, while Pn@SiO2 buffers thermal fluctuations via latent heat storage and release, enabling on-demand thermal management. By systematically tuning the TM content, the optical and thermal responses are directly regulated. At 25 wt % TM, the coating exhibits a solar reflectance of 88.18% (45 °C) and 62.42% (20 °C) (ΔRsol = 25.76%), yielding ∼3 °C cooling and ∼2.5 °C heating under outdoor conditions, establishing effective temperature modulation in real environments. Notably, the coating further exhibits hydrophobicity, self-cleaning capability, and mechanical durability, facilitating the practical deployment of adaptive thermal interfaces for next-generation thermal management applications.