Up to Date Review of Nature-Inspired Superhydrophobic Textiles: Fabrication and Applications

In recent years, with the rapid development of the economy and great progress in science and technology, people have become increasingly concerned about their quality of life and physical health. In order to pursue a higher life, various functional and biomimetic textiles have emerged one after another and have been sought after by people. There are many animal and plant surfaces with special wettability in nature, and their unique "micro-nano structures" and low surface energy have attracted extensive attention from researchers. Researchers have prepared various textiles with superhydrophobic features by mimicking these unique structures. This review introduces the typical organisms with superhydrophobicity in nature, using lotus, water strider, and cicada as examples, and describes their morphological features and excellent superhydrophobicity. The theoretical model, commonly used raw materials, and modification technology of superhydrophobic surfaces are analyzed. In addition, the application areas and the current study status of superhydrophobic surfaces for textiles are also summarized. Finally, the development prospects for superhydrophobic textiles based on bionic technology are discussed.

Advances in the research of carbon-, silicon-, and polymer-based superhydrophobic nanomaterials: Synthesis and potential application

With the rapid development of science and technology, superhydrophobic nanomaterials have become one of the hot topics from various subjects. Due to their distinct properties, such as superhydrophobicity, anti-icing and corrosion resistance, superhydrophobic nanomaterials are widely used in industry, agriculture, defense, medicine and other fields. Hence, the development of superhydrophobic materials with superior performance, economical, practical features, and environment-friendly properties are extremely important for industrial development and environmental protection. Aimed to provide a scientific and theoretical basis for the subsequent study on the preparation of composite superhydrophobic nanomaterials, this paper reviewed the latest progress in the research of superhydrophobic surface wettability and the theory of superhydrophobicity, summarized and analyzed the latest development of carbon-based, silicon-based and polymer-based superhydrophobic nanomaterials in terms of their synthesis, modification, properties and structure sizes (diameters), discussed the problems and unique application prospects of carbon-based, silicon-based and polymer-based superhydrophobic nanomaterials.

Constructing Superhydrophobic Surface on Copper Substrate with Dealloying-Forming and Solution-Immersion Method

In this study, a superhydrophobic surface was constructed on a copper substrate through dealloying-forming and solution-immersion methods. The dealloying process for nanostructures on a copper surface involved the electrodeposition of zinc atoms, and the thermal alloying and chemical dealloying of zinc atoms. Then, a dealloyed copper surface was subsequently modified with low-surface-energy copper stearate to produce a superhydrophobic surface. Scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffractometry, and Fourier transform infrared spectrometry were employed to characterize the morphological features and composition components of the surface in the fabrication process. The static contact angles of the copper surfaces were compared and evaluated based on various fabrication parameters, including electric current density, corrosive solution concentration, and nanostructures. The results indicated that a leaf-like copper stearate could be constructed through immersing a dealloyed copper plate into a 0.005 mol/L ethanol solution of stearic acid for 5 min. Nanostructures provided more attachment areas on the copper surface to facilitate the formation of copper stearate. The resulting as-prepared surface presented excellent superhydrophobic properties with a contact angle of over 156.5°, and showed the potential properties of non-sticking, self-cleaning, anti-corrosion, and stability. This study provides an efficient approach to fabricate superhydrophobic surfaces for engineering copper metals.

Preparation strategy and evaluation method of durable superhydrophobic rubber composites

Superhydrophobic rubber composites have broad application prospects in national defense, industrial and agricultural production and daily life due to their special surface wettability. However, its poor durability at present seriously limits its practical application. Microstructure and low surface energy substances are the decisive factors to realize superhydrophobic surface. Therefore, three strategies to improve the durability of superhydrophobic surface were put forward, including improving the mechanical strength of microstructure, enhancing the adhesion between coating and substrate, and constructing self-repairing surface. On this basis, the preparation techniques of durable superhydrophobic rubber composites were summarized, and then the evaluation methods of durability of superhydrophobic rubber composites were introduced in detail from mechanical durability and chemical durability.

Enhanced Hydrofobicity of Polymers for Personal Protective Equipment Achieved by Chemical and Physical Modification

The article presents significant results in research on creating superhydrophobic properties of materials which can be used as an interesting material for use in self-cleaning polymer protective gloves and similar applications where the superhydrophobicity plays a significant role. In this work the influence of laser surface modification of MVQ silicone rubber was investigated. The research was conducted using a nanosecond-pulsed laser at 1060 nm wavelength. After a process of laser ablation, the surface condition was examined using a SEM microscope and infrared spectroscopy. During the tests, the contact angle was checked both before and after the laser modification of samples pre-geometrised in the process of their production. The test results presented in the paper indicate that the chemical and physical modifications contribute to the change in the MVQ silicone rubber contact angle. A significant increase (by more than 30°) in the contact angle to 138° was observed. It was confirmed that surface geometrisation is not the only factor contributing to an increase in the contact angle of the analyzed material; other factors include a change in laser texturing parameters, such as mean beam power, pulse duration, scanning speed and pulse repetition frequency.