Controlling the Localization of Liquid Droplets in Polymer Matrices by Evaporative Lithography |
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| Authors: | Dr. Huaixia Zhao Jiajia Xu Prof. Guangyin Jing Dr. Lizbeth Ofelia Prieto‐López Prof. Xu Deng Dr. Jiaxi Cui |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Institute of Fundamental and Frontier Sciences, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, China;2. INM-Leibniz Institute for New Materials, Saarbrücken, Germany;3. National Key Laboratory and Incubation Base of Photoelectric Technology and Functional Materials and School of Physics, Northwest University, China;4. PMMH, CNRS-UMR 7636, ESPCI-ParisTech, Paris, France |
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| Abstract: | Localized inclusions of liquids provide solid materials with many functions, such as self‐healing, secretion, and tunable mechanical properties, in a spatially controlled mode. However, a strategy to control the distribution of liquid droplets in solid matrices directly obtained from a homogeneous solution has not been reported thus far. Herein, we describe an approach to selectively localize liquid droplets in a supramolecular gel directly obtained from its solution by using evaporative lithography. In this process, the formation of droplet‐embedded domains occurs in regions of free evaporation where the non‐volatile liquid is concentrated and undergoes a phase separation to create liquid droplets prior to gelation, while a homogeneous gel matrix is formed in the regions of hindered evaporation. The different regions of a coating with droplet embedment patterns display different secretion abilities, enabling the control of the directional movement of water droplets. |
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| Keywords: | dynamic materials evaporative lithography liquid droplets polymer matrices supramolecular gels |
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