Instant Tuning of Superhydrophilic to Robust Superhydrophobic and Self-Cleaning Metallic Coating: Simple, Direct, One-Step, and Scalable Technique

High Hardness, Excellent Hydrophobicity, and Favorable Corrosion Resistance of Plasma-Sprayed FeCrMoSi Amorphous Coatings on 304 Stainless Steel

The FeCrMoSi amorphous coatings were fabricated on the surface of a 304 stainless steel (SS) base material using atmospheric plasma spraying. A comprehensive investigation was carried out to evaluate the structure, morphology, adhesion to base material, hardness, hydrophobicity, interfacial contact resistance, and corrosion resistance of the coatings. The results show a remarkable hardness of 1180.1 HV, a strong bond strength of up to 64.3 N/mm2, and excellent hydrophobicity with a water contact angle reaching 141.2°. Additionally, in an acidic environment with fluoride ions (0.5 M H2SO4 + 2 ppm HF, 80 °C), the FeCrMoSi amorphous coating demonstrated superior corrosion resistance compared with 304 SS while maintaining similar electroconductibility. Detailed analysis of the structural characteristics and corrosion resistance of FeCrMoSi amorphous coatings provided valuable insights into their mechanics. These promising results signify a bright future for FeCrMoSi amorphous coatings in various industrial sectors, including transportation, petroleum, and electric power industries.

Heat Transfer Characteristics of Pool Boiling with Scalable Plasma-Sprayed Aluminum Coatings

To ensure adequate reliability in two-phase cooling systems involving boiling, it is essential to enhance the heat transfer coefficient and maximize the critical heat flux (CHF) limit. A key technique to avoid surface burnout and increase the CHF limit in pool boiling is the frequent coolant supply to the probable dry-out locations. In the present work, we have explored the plasma-spray coating as a surface modification technique for enhancing heat transfer coefficient and CHF value in pool boiling applications. Three plasma-coated aluminum surfaces (C-15, C-20, and C-25) are fabricated on a copper substrate at three different plasma powers of 15, 20, and 25 kW, respectively. Detailed surface morphologies of the plasma-sprayed coatings are presented, and their roles in pool boiling heat transfer mechanisms are analyzed. Plasma-coated surfaces exhibit wickability characteristics and enhanced wettability compared to the plain copper surface. Saturated pool boiling experiments are performed with DI (deionized) water at atmospheric pressure. Plasma spray-coated surfaces show favorable boiling incipience with less wall superheat and more active nucleation sites than the plain copper surface. Compared to the plain copper surface, enhancement values of nearly 68, 60.7, and 55.5% in the heat transfer coefficient are observed for C-15, C-20, and C-25 plasma-coated surfaces, respectively. Experiments could not be performed beyond the heat flux of 197 W/cm² due to repeated failure of the cartridge heaters. Based on the experimental measurement of wickabilities, the CHF values of plasma-coated surfaces have been theoretically calculated. Compared to the plain copper surface, a maximum 2.39 times higher CHF value is observed for C-15 plasma-coated surface. Improved wettability and wickability are responsible for CHF enhancement in the case of plasma-coated surfaces. At higher heat flux, capillary wicking and frequent rewetting of the dryout locations delay the burnout phenomenon, enhancing CHF in plasma-coated surfaces. The plasma-spray coating is a robust and scalable process, which can be a potential candidate for high heat flux dissipation in various industrial applications.

Improvement mechanism of NO photocatalytic degradation performance of self-cleaning synergistic photocatalytic coating under high humidity

Photocatalytic coating has been widely studied as a promising material to remove air pollutants. However, the effectiveness and long-term effect of photocatalysis in high relative humidity environment is still the main challenge in this field. In this study, a fluorinated WO₃-TiO₂ nanorods/SiO₂ epoxy photocatalytic superamphiphobic coating (FTSE coating) was prepared using a simple spraying method. The micromorphology and chemical composition of FTSE coating was characterized by SEM, EDS, FT-IR, XPS and TGA techniques. The advanced contact angle and hysteresis angle test show that the FTSE coating had excellent superamphiphobicity. The mechanical abrasions, corrosion resistance and UV aging tests show that the FTSE coating exhibited reasonable durability. Besides, the NO degradation efficiency of hydrophilic and superamphiphobic coatings with contact angles of 20.19°, 87.74°, 162.93° and 164.47° was tested in different humidity environment. The results showed that the superamphiphobic coating exhibited more superior photocatalytic degradation efficiency (84.02%) than the hydrophilic coating (51.38%) at a high relative humidity (RH=98%). Finally, FTSE coating exhibited prominent photocatalytic stability and the synergistic effect of photocatalysis and self-cleaning. After 30 d outdoor weathering test, the NO degradation efficiency decreased by 13.07% and recovered to the original level after flushing. The improvement mechanism of NO degradation performance was proposed based on the characteristics of superamphiphobic surface.

Energy conversion based on superhydrophobic surfaces

Covering about 70% of the earth's surface, water contains considerable energy that remains unexploited. Superhydrophobic surfaces (SHSs) possess excellent water repellency, and energy conversion based on SHSs has opened up a new avenue for efficient collection and utilization of water energy. Therefore, it is of great significance to efficiently prepare SHSs and apply them for energy conversion in different fields. In this review, we first summarize the fabrication methods of SHSs, and then provide an overview of the energy conversion forms based on SHSs. Finally, the related applications corresponding to the energy conversion forms are introduced, including renewable energy collection and utilization, wearable device design, use of liquid sensors, surface cooling and heat dissipation, self-propelled devices, droplet manipulation and lab-on-a-chip devices; and their challenges and future perspectives are highlighted.

Nonwetting Behavior of Al-Co Quasicrystalline Approximants Owing to Their Unique Electronic Structures

Good wetting is generally observed for liquid metals on metallic substrates, while poor wetting usually occurs for metals on insulating oxides. In this work, we report unexpected large contact angles for lead on two metallic approximants to decagonal quasicrystals, namely, Al₅Co₂ and Al₁₃Co₄. Intrinsic surface wettability is predicted from first principles, using a thermodynamic model based on the Young equation, and validated by the good agreement with experimental measurements performed under ultra-high vacuum by scanning electron microscopy. The atomistic details of the atomic and electronic structures at the Pb-substrate interface, and the comparison with Pb(111)/Al(111), underline the influence of the specific electronic structures of quasicrystalline approximants on wetting. Our work suggests a possible correlation of the contact angles with the density of states at the Fermi energy and paves the way for a better fundamental understanding of wettability on intermetallic substrates, which has potential consequences in several applications such as supported catalysts, protective coatings, or crystal growth.