Controlled wettability based on reversible micro-cracking on a shape memory polymer surface

Wettability modification on a polymer surface is of immense importance for flexible electronics and biomedical applications. Herein, controlled wettability of a styrene-based shape memory polymer has been realized by introducing micro-cracks on the polymer surface for the first time. The cracks were purposely prepared by thin metal film constrained deformation on the polymer. After the removal of the metallic film, wettability was dramatically enhanced by showing a remarkable reduction in the contact angle with water droplets from 85° to 25°. Subsequent systematic characterization techniques like XPS and SEM revealed that such observation could be attributed to the increased density of hydrophilic groups and the roughened surface. In addition, by controlling the temperature for annealing the treated polymer, the surface could be switched reversely to water-repellent. Therefore, this paper offers a smart tactic to manipulate the surface wettability of a shape memory polymer freely. The features of the controlled wettability surface such as high tenability, high stability and easy fabrication are promising for microfluidic switching and molecule/cell capture-release.

Surfaces with combined microscale and nanoscale structures: a route to mechanically stable superhydrophobic surfaces?

Materials with superhydrophobic properties are usually generated by covering the surfaces with hydrophobic nanoscale rough features. A major problem, however, for any practical application of such strongly water-repellent surfaces is the mechanical fragility of the nanostructures. Even moderate forces caused by touching or rubbing the surfaces are frequently strong enough to destroy the nanostructures and lead to the loss of the superhydrophobic properties. In this article, we study the mechanical stability of superhydrophobic surfaces with three different topographies: nano- and microscale features and surfaces carrying a combination of both. The surfaces are generated by silicon etching and subsequent coating with a monolayer of a fluoropolymer (PFA). We perform controlled wear tests on the different surfaces and discuss the impact of wear on the wetting properties of the different surfaces.