Surface Modification, Topographic Design and Applications of Superhydrophobic Systems

Superhydrophobic surfaces with expanded wetting behaviors, like tunable adhesion, hybrid surface hydrophobicity and smart hydrophobic switching have attracted increasing attention due to their broad applications. Herein, the construction methods, mechanisms and advanced applications of special superhydrophobicity are reviewed, and hydro/superhydrophobic modifications are categorized and discussed based on their surface chemistry, and topographic design. The formation and maintenance of special superhydrophobicity in the metastable state are also examined and explored. In addition, particular attention is paid to the use of special wettability in various applications, such as membrane distillation, droplet-based electricity generators and anti-fogging surfaces. Finally, the challenges for practical applications and future research directions are discussed.

Biology and nature: Bionic superhydrophobic surface and principle

Nature is the source of human design inspiration. In order to adapt to the environment better, creatures in nature have formed various morphological structures during billions of years of evolution, among which the superhydrophobic characteristics of some animal and plant surface structures have attracted wide attention. At present, the preparation methods of bionic superhydrophobic surface based on the microstructure of animal and plant body surface include vapor deposition, etching modification, sol-gel method, template method, electrostatic spinning method and electrostatic spraying method, etc., which have been used in medical care, military industry, shipping, textile and other fields. Based on nature, this paper expounds the development history of superhydrophobic principle, summarizes the structure and wettability of superhydrophobic surfaces in nature, and introduces the characteristics differences and applications of different superhydrophobic surfaces in detail. Finally, the challenge of bionic superhydrophobic surface is discussed, and the future development direction of this field is prospected.

A Durable PVDF/PFOTES-SiO2 Superhydrophobic Coating on AZ31B Mg Alloy with Enhanced Abrasion Resistance Performance and Anti-Corrosion Properties

A simple and practical spray method is employed to prepare a PVDF/PFOTES-SiO2 superhydrophobic composite coating on the AZ31B Mg alloy substrate. The morphology, composition, and water contact angle (CA) were measured by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) and contact angle measuring instrument. Hydrophilic nano-SiO2 is modified by PFOTES to obtain hydrophobicity. The influence of the mass of PFOTES-SiO2 to PVDF on the hydrophobic properties was studied. The wear resistance and stability of the composite coating have been investigated by immersion test, cross-cut adhesion test and friction test. Additionally, the corrosion resistance was measured by electrochemical workstation and salt spray corrosion test. The CA of PVDF/PFOTES-SiO2 coating is 161.3° and the sliding angle (SAs) is less than 2°. After 10× the sandpaper friction test, the superhydrophobic contact angle of the coating remained above 155°, and the sliding angle was less than 5°, which indicated that the prepared coating is a strong superhydrophobic coating with good wear resistance. The results of the electrochemical tests show that the superhydrophobic coating improved the anti-corrosion performance of Mg alloy, and the water contact angle is greater than 150° after 168 h salt spray corrosion test. Due to its excellent superhydrophobicity, wear resistance and anti-corrosion properties, the robust PVDF/PFOTES-SiO2 coating is considered to have great potential for future applications in the automotive and marine industries.

Extraordinary Superhydrophobic Polycaprolactone-Based Composite Membrane with an Alternated Micro-Nano Hierarchical Structure as an Eco-friendly Oil/Water Separator

Extraordinary superhydrophobic polycaprolactone (PCL) composite membranes with an alternated hierarchical micro-nano structure were designed by addition of SiO₂ aerogel. The highest water contact angle (WCA) of 166.8 ± 1.5° was obtained when SiO₂ aerogel content was 0.5% (PCL/SiO₂-a0.5) in the PCL composite membrane, which was higher than other reported polymer-based membranes. SiO₂ aerogel lowered PCL composite membrane's surface energy. The triple curvature structure composed of microspheres, nanospheres, and nanofibers produced on PCL/SiO₂-a0.5 membranes endowed the excellent roughness of the surface. Also, the inner structure of the PCL/SiO₂-a0.5 composite membrane composed of micro-nano spheres, nanofibers, and microfibers increased the porosity of the separation membrane, which would provide more adsorption space. The PCL/SiO₂-a0.5 composite membrane as a separator for surfactant-stabilized emulsions of water-in-oil showed ultrahigh separation flux and efficiency. Meanwhile, the PCL/SiO₂-a0.5 composite membrane had an outstanding chemical resistance, self-cleaning ability, and good reusability. The composite membranes reported in this work as eco-friendly separation materials possessed all these characters in oil/water separation. This research proposed a very simple method to design eco-friendly high-efficiency separators through the construction of the alternated micro-nano hierarchical structure.

Applicable Superamphiphobic Ni/Cu Surface with High Liquid Repellency Enabled by the Electrochemical-Deposited Dual-Scale Structure

Until now, scalable fabrication and utilization of superamphiphobic surfaces based on sophisticated structures has remained challenging. Herein, we develop an applicable superamphiphobic surface with nano-Ni pyramid/micro-Cu cone structures prepared by cost-effective electrochemical deposition. More importantly, excellent dynamic wettability is achieved, exhibiting as ultralow sliding angle (∼0°), multiple droplets rebounding (13 times), and a total rejection. The supportive cushions trapped within the dual-scale micro/nanostructures is proved to be the key factor contributing to such high liquid repellency, whose existence is intuitively ascertained at both solid-air-liquid and water-solid-oil systems in this work. In addition, the enduring reliability of the wetting performance under various harsh conditions further endows the surface with broader application prospects.

Robust Fluorine-Free and Self-Healing Superhydrophobic Coatings by H3BO3 Incorporation with SiO2-Alkyl-Silane@PDMS on Cotton Fabric

Limited robustness is a serious drawback for superhydrophobic coatings and degrades the performance of superhydrophobic surfaces in practical applications. Although fluororeagents have excellent durability for superhydrophobicity, their use has been restricted due to various health and environmental concerns. In this work, we describe a facile and efficient fabrication strategy for creating robust fluorine-free superhydrophobic composite coatings that are prepared by a simple dip-dry method, in which the H₃BO₃-incorporated SiO₂-alkyl-silane coatings are deposited on woven cotton fabric surfaces followed by polydimethylsiloxane modification. The coated surface shows a large water contact angle of 157.95 ± 2° and a small sliding hysteresis angle (SHA) of 3.8 ± 0.6°, demonstrating excellent superhydrophobicity. The coated fabric surface also exhibited robustness and durability, withstanding a tape-peeling test (under 48.05 kPa) for around 80 repetitions and sandpaper rubbing (loaded 100 g) for 40 cycles. Furthermore, the coated fabric surface displayed self-healing and oil-water separation capacities. The developed superhydrophobic coatings in this study are robust, environmentally benign, and easy to fabricate, showing promising applications in textile industries.

Wrinkling of two-dimensional materials: methods, properties and applications

Recently, two-dimensional (2D) materials, including graphene, its derivatives, metal films, MXenes and transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), have been widely studied because of their tunable electronic structures and special electrical and optical properties. However, during the fabrication of these 2D materials with atomic thickness, formation of wrinkles or folds is unavoidable to enable their stable existence. Meaningfully, it is found that wrinkled structures simultaneously impose positive changes on the 2D materials. Specifically, the architecture of wrinkled structures in 2D materials additionally induces excellent properties, which are of great importance for their practical applications. In this review, we provide an overview of categories of 2D materials, which contains formation and fabrication methods of wrinkled patterns and relevant mechanisms, as well as the induced mechanical, electrical, thermal and optical properties. Furthermore, these properties are modifiable by controlling the surface topography or even by dynamically stretching the 2D materials. Wrinkling offers a platform for 2D materials to be applied in some promising fields such as field emitters, energy containers and suppliers, field effect transistors, hydrophobic surfaces, sensors for flexible electronics and artificial intelligence. Finally, the opportunities and challenges of wrinkled 2D materials in the near future are discussed.

An enhanced enzymatic reaction using a triphase system based on superhydrophobic mesoporous nanowire arrays

Gaseous reactants play a key role in a wide range of biocatalytic reactions, however reaction kinetics are generally limited by the slow mass transport of gases (typically oxygen) in or through aqueous solutions. Inspired by the morphologies of natural non-wetting surfaces, herein we address this limitation by developing a triphase reaction system possessing a triphase gas-solid-liquid interface. As a proof of concept, we study the kinetics of glucose oxidase (GOx) catalyzed reactions using a triphase system fabricated by layering GOx upon superhydrophobic mesoporous ZnO nanowire arrays through which oxygen, needed for the enzymatic reaction, is supplied directly from the atmosphere to the liquid-solid interface. We find that the enzymatic reaction rate is enhanced by a factor of 30 over that obtained from a conventional diphase system where oxygen is supplied through and from the liquid. The triphase system offers the opportunity to develop high performance bioassay systems, serving as an enabling platform for addressing challenges posed by gas-deficit kinetics.

Substrate-Versatile Approach to Robust Antireflective and Superhydrophobic Coatings with Excellent Self-Cleaning Property in Varied Environments

Robust antireflective and superhydrophobic coatings are highly desired in wide applications, such as optical devices, solar cell panels, architectural and automotive glasses, lab-on chip systems, and windows for electronic devices. Meanwhile, simple, low-cost, and substrate-versatile fabrication is also essential toward real applications of such coatings. Herein, we developed a substrate-versatile strategy to fabricate robust antireflective and superhydrophobic coatings with excellent self-cleaning property in varied environments, including air and oil and after oil contamination. A mixed ethanol suspension, which consists of 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorooctyltriethoxysilane modified dual-sized silica nanoparticles and acid-catalyzed silica precursor, was first synthesized. The acid-catalyzed silica precursor could help to form a highly cross-linked silica network by connecting the silica nanoparticles, thus significantly enhancing the robustness of coatings. The as-prepared coatings were able to withstand a water drop impact test, sand abrasion test, tape adhesion test, and knife and pencil scratching tests. More importantly, it was also found that the wettability and self-cleaning property of coatings after oil contamination were surprisingly different from those in air and oil. These observations are explainable by the alteration of interface; i.e., the alteration of interface has significant effects on the functional properties of coatings. Additionally, the mixed suspension could be sprayed onto various hard and soft substrates including glass, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polycarbonate (PC), and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), opening up a feasible route toward varied practical applications in solar cell panels, optical devices, architectural and automotive glasses, droplet manipulators, and fluid control.

Buoyancy increase and drag-reduction through a simple superhydrophobic coating

A superhydrophobic paint was fabricated using 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorooctyltriethoxysilane (PFOTES), TiO₂ nanoparticles and ethanol. The paint has potential for aquatic application of a superhydrophobic coating as it induces increased buoyancy and drag reduction. Buoyance testing showed that the reduction of surface energy by superhydrophobic coating made it feasible that glass, a high density material, was supported by the surface tension of water. In a miniature boat sailing test, it was shown that the low energy surface treatment decreased the adhesion of water molecules to the surface of the boat resulting in a reduction of the drag force. Additionally, a robust superhydrophobic surface was fabricated through layer-by-layer coating using adhesive double side tape and the paint, and after a 100 cm abrasion test with sand paper, the surface still retained its water repellency, enhanced buoyancy and drag reduction.

Nature-Inspired Strategy toward Superhydrophobic Fabrics for Versatile Oil/Water Separation

Phytic acid, which is a naturally occurring component that is widely found in many plants, can strongly bond toxic mineral elements in the human body, because of its six phosphate groups. Some of the metal ions present the property of bonding with phytic acid to form insoluble coordination complexes aggregations, even at room temperature. Herein, a superhydrophobic cotton fabric was prepared using a novel and facile nature-inspired strategy that introduced phytic acid metal complex aggregations to generate rough hierarchical structures on a fabric surface, followed by PDMS modification. This superhydrophobic surface can be constructed not only on cotton fabric, but also on filter paper, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fabric, and sponge. Ag^I, Fe^III, Ce^III, Zr^IV, and Sn^IV are very commendatory ions in our study. Taking phytic acid-Fe^III-based superhydrophobic fabric as an example, it showed excellent resistance to ultraviolet (UV) irradiation, high temperature, and organic solvent immersion, and it has good resistance to mechanical wear and abrasion. The superhydrophobic/superoleophilic fabric was successfully used to separate oil/water mixtures with separation efficiencies as high as 99.5%. We envision that these superantiwetting fabrics, modified with phytic acid-metal complexes and PDMS, are environmentally friendly, low cost, sustainable, and easy to scale up, and thereby exhibit great potentials in practical applications.

Water-repellent and corrosion-resistance properties of superhydrophobic and lubricant-infused super slippery surfaces

Inspired by lotus leaves and pitcher plants, superhydrophobic surfaces and super slippery surfaces have been fabricated to improve the characteristics of AZ31 magnesium alloy surfaces.

Hierarchical flower like double-layer superhydrophobic films fabricated on AZ31 for corrosion protection and self-cleaning

The designed sample is prepared by self-assembly of octadecyltrichlorosilane and deposition of ferric stearate, and the contact angle is 160°.

Patterning liquids on inkjet-imprinted surfaces with highly adhesive superhydrophobicity

The rapidly increasing research interest in microfluidics, microreactors and solution-processable fabrication technologies requires the development of patterning techniques to obtain large-scale functional liquid arrays. To achieve this objective, photolithography, microcontact printing and mask-based UV irradiation have been utilized to physically or chemically pattern surfaces into templates where ordered arrays of liquid materials are constructed. However, these methods require elaborately fabricated templates or expensive vacuum-deposited masks that restrict their practical applications. Herein, we fabricate physically patterned superhydrophobic surfaces with high adhesion by modifying inkjet-imprinted surfaces through nanoparticle deposition, and utilize these surfaces as templates for liquid patterning. Various functional liquid materials are patterned into defined shapes through a simple dipping-withdrawing process. Moreover, functional material patterns such as photonic crystal patterns, arrays of inorganic nanoparticles and crystals are formed after solvent evaporation of the liquid droplets. Furthermore, chemical reactions can be carried out on the patterns. These surfaces demonstrate excellent performance in liquid patterning, which will find numerous applications in optoelectronic devices, lab-on-chip devices, microreactors, and related fields.

Electrodeposition of High Density Silver Nanosheets with Controllable Morphologies Served as Effective and Reproducible SERS Substrates

Silver nanosheets with a nanogap smaller than 10 nm and high reproducibility were constructed through simple and environmentally friendly electrodeposition method on copper plate. The sizes of the nanogaps can be varied from around 7 to 150 nm by adjusting the deposition time and current density. The nanosheets with different nanogaps exhibited varied surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) properties due to electromagnetic mechanism (EM). The optimized high density silver nanosheets with a nanogap smaller than 10 nm showed effective SERS ability with an enhanced factor as high as 2.0 × 10(5). Furthermore, the formation mechanism of the nanosheets during the electrodeposition process has been investigated by discussing the influence of boric acid and current density. This method has proved to be applicable on different metal substrates, which exhibits the potential to be widely used in different fields.

Biomimetic water-collecting materials inspired by nature

Nowadays, water shortage is a severe issue all over the world, especially in some arid and undeveloped areas. Interestingly, a variety of natural creatures can collect water from fog, which can provide a source of inspiration to develop novel and functional water-collecting materials. Recently, as an increasingly hot research topic, bioinspired materials with the water collection ability have captured vast scientific attention in both practical applications and fundamental research studies. In this review, we summarize the mechanisms of water collection in various natural creatures and present the fabrications, functions, applications, and new developments of bioinspired materials in recent years. The theoretical basis related to the phenomenon of water collection containing wetting behaviors and water droplet transportations is described in the beginning, i.e., the Young's equation, Wenzel model, Cassie model, surface energy gradient model and Laplace pressure equation. Then, the water collection mechanisms of three typical and widely researched natural animals and plants are discussed and their corresponding bioinspired materials are simultaneously detailed, which are cactus, spider, and desert beetles, respectively. This is followed by introducing another eight animals and plants (butterfly, shore birds, wheat awns, green bristlegrass, the Cotula fallax plant, Namib grass, green tree frogs and Australian desert lizards) that are rarely reported, exhibiting water collection properties or similar water droplet transportation. Finally, conclusions and outlook concerning the future development of bioinspired fog-collecting materials are presented.

Durable and scalable icephobic surfaces: similarities and distinctions from superhydrophobic surfaces

Formation, adhesion, and accumulation of ice, snow, frost, glaze, rime, or their mixtures can cause severe problems for solar panels, wind turbines, aircrafts, heat pumps, power lines, telecommunication equipment, and submarines. These problems can decrease efficiency in power generation, increase energy consumption, result in mechanical and/or electrical failure, and generate safety hazards. To address these issues, the fundamentals of interfaces between liquids and surfaces at low temperatures have been extensively studied. This has lead to development of so called "icephobic" surfaces, which possess a number of overlapping, yet distinctive, characteristics from superhydrophobic surfaces. Less attention has been given to distinguishing differences between formation and adhesion of ice, snow, glaze, rime, and frost or to developing a clear definition for icephobic, or more correctly pagophobic, surfaces. In this review, we strive to clarify these differences and distinctions, while providing a comprehensive definition of icephobicity. We classify different canonical families of icephobic (pagophobic) surfaces providing a review of those with potential for scalable and robust development.

Robust superhydrophobic surface on Al substrate with durability, corrosion resistance and ice-phobicity

Practical application of superhydrophobic surfaces is limited by the fragility of nanoscale asperities. Combining chemical etching and anodization, microscale pits and nanoscale pores, instead of the micro and nano protrusions on traditional superhydrophobic surfaces mimicking Lutos leaves, were fabricated on commercially pure aluminum surfaces. After modified by FDTS, the surfaces were superhydrophobic and self-cleaning. The ultrahigh hardness and electrochemical stability of Al₂O₃ coating endowed the surface excellent mechanical durability and good corrosion resistance. Because the method is scalable, it may find practical application on body panels of automobiles and aircrafts and so on.

Three-tier rough superhydrophobic surfaces

A three-tier rough superhydrophobic surface was fabricated by growing hydrophobic modified (fluorinated silane) zinc oxide (ZnO)/copper oxide (CuO) hetero-hierarchical structures on silicon (Si) micro-pillar arrays. Compared with the other three control samples with a less rough tier, the three-tier surface exhibits the best water repellency with the largest contact angle 161° and the lowest sliding angle 0.5°. It also shows a robust Cassie state which enables the water to flow with a speed over 2 m s(-1). In addition, it could prevent itself from being wetted by the droplet with low surface tension (mixed water and ethanol 1:1 in volume) which reveals a flow speed of 0.6 m s(-1) (dropped from the height of 2 cm). All these features prove that adding another rough tier on a two-tier rough surface could futher improve its water-repellent properties.

Surface adhesive forces: a metric describing the drag-reducing effects of superhydrophobic coatings

Nanomaterials with superhydrophobic properties are promising as drag-reducing coatings. However, debates regarding whether superhydrophobic surfaces are favorable for drag reduction require further clarification. A quantified water adhesive force measurement is proposed as a metric and its effectiveness demonstrated using three typical superhydrophobic coatings on model ships with in situ sailing tests.

A facile method to fabricate functionally integrated devices for oil/water separation

In this paper, we present a facile method for the fabrication of a functionally integrated device, which has the multi-functions of the oil-containment boom, oil-sorption material, and water/oil-separating film, through a single immersion step in an ethanol solution of stearic acid. During the simple immersion process, the two dominant factors of superhydrophobicity, surface roughness and low-surface-energy coatings, could be accomplished simultaneously. The as-prepared functionally integrated device with superhydrophobicity/superoleophilicity displayed a lower density than that of water, such that it could float on water and act as an oil-containment boom; an efficient oil-absorbing property, which was attributed to the capillary effect caused by micrometer-sized pore structures and could be used as oil-sorption materials; a high oil/water separating efficiency which was suitable for water/oil-separating film. In this way, the functions of oil collection, absorption, and water/oil separation are integrated into a single device, and these functions could work independently, reducing the cost in terms of energy consumption and being versatile for a wide range of applications.