Patterned superhydrophobic paper for microfluidic devices obtained by writing and printing

This work outlines inexpensive patterning methodologies to create open-air microfluidic paper-based devices. A phase-separation methodology was used to obtain biomimetic superhydrophobic paper, hierarchically composed by micro and nano topographies. Writing and printing are simple actions that can be used to pattern flat superhydrophobic paper with more wettable channels. In particular, inkjet printing permits controlling the wettability of the surface by changing the darkness of the printed regions. The difference between capillary forces provides the possibility to control and drive liquid flows through the open path lines, just by titling the piece of paper. Additionally, maintaining a continuous flow, it is possible to direct the liquid at different volumetric rates in a horizontal position along non-linear channel paths printed/written over the surface.     

水滴在超疏水植物叶片上的沉积方法和机理研究进展

自然界中有很多超疏水植物叶片, 水滴撞击在这些表面时极易产生溅射和反弹, 造成农用化学品喷雾施药时药物的大量损失, 利用率低下, 从而重复喷洒施药. 农用化学品过度使用将造成食品安全、 农药残留、 水资源浪费及环境生态污染等问题. 因此, 增加水滴在超疏水植物叶片表面的沉积效率对提高农药利用率尤为重要. 本文从分析水滴在超疏水表面的撞击动力学特征开始, 结合添加助剂后液滴的物理化学性质, 系统阐述了水滴在超疏水植物叶片上的沉积方法和机理, 并提出筛选助剂和研究机理不仅要考虑助剂性质还要结合基底结构、 撞击动力学特征等因素, 而且还要考虑单水滴尺寸大小、 基底运动和弹性及环境因素等对沉积的影响. 本文对农药喷洒及生物医学、 机械工程、 涂料喷涂和油墨打印等领域均有指导意义和应用价值.     

高黏附性超疏水表面的研究进展

黏附性是超疏水表面的一个重要特性,随着对超疏水表面研究的深入,具有响应特性的智能超疏水表面引起了人们的极大兴趣,而能够作为“机械手”抓取液滴的具有高黏附性的超疏水表面自然成为关注对象。 本文讨论了表面形貌和表面化学组成对超疏水表面黏附性的影响,综述了近年来高黏附性超疏水表面制备方面的研究进展,并对高黏附性超疏水表面未来的研究方向做出了展望。     

Wettability conversion on the liquid flame spray generated superhydrophobic TiO2 nanoparticle coating on paper and board by photocatalytic decomposition of spontaneously accumulated carbonaceous overlayer

Titanium dioxide (TiO₂) is a photoactive material with various interesting and useful properties. One of those is the perfect wettability of TiO₂ surface after ultraviolet (UV) illumination. Wettability of a solid surface plays an important role in the field of printing, coating, and adhesion among others. Here we report on a superhydrophobic and photoactive liquid flame spray (LFS) generated TiO₂ nanoparticle coating that can be applied on web-like materials such as paper and board in one-step roll-to-roll process. The LFS TiO₂ nanoparticle coated paper and board were superhydrophobic instantly after the coating procedure because of spontaneously accumulated carbonaceous overlayer on TiO₂, and thus there was no need for any type of separate hydrophobization treatment. The highly photoactive LFS TiO₂ nanoparticle coating could be converted steplessly from superhydrophobic to superhydrophilic by UV-illumination, and the coating gave strong response to natural daylight illumination even in the shade. The superhydrophobic LFS TiO₂ coated surface can be used as an intelligent substrate, where photo-generated hydrophilic patterns guide the fluid setting and figure formation. Our study reveals that the wettability changes on the LFS TiO₂ surface were primarily caused by the photocatalytic removal of the carbonaceous material from TiO₂ during the UV-illumination and spontaneous accumulation of the carbonaceous material on the surface of the metal oxide during storage in the dark. The latter mechanism was found to be a temperature activated process which could be significantly speeded up by heat treatment. If other mechanisms such as surface oxidization, increment of hydroxyl groups, or charge separation played a role in the wetting phenomena on TiO₂, their effect was rather secondary as the removal and accumulation of the carbonaceous material dominated the wettability changes on the surface. Our study gives valuable information on the complex issue of photo-induced wettability changes on TiO₂.     

Superhydrophobic thermoplastic polyurethane films with transparent/fluorescent performance

In this paper, we report a simple and versatile route for the fabrication of superhydrophobic thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) films. The approach is based on octadecanamide (ODAA)-directed assembly of nanosilica/TPU/ODAA hybrid with a well-defined sheetlike microstructure. The superhydrophobic hybrid film shows a transparent property, and its water contact angle reaches as high as 163.5° without any further low surface energy treatment. In addition, the superhydrophobic TPU hybrid film with fluorescent properties is achieved by smartly introducing CdTe quantum dots, which will extend potential application of the film to optoelectronic areas. The resulting fluorescent surface produced in this system is stable and has a water contact angle of 172.3°. This assembly method to control surface structures represents an intriguing and valuable route to tune the surface properties of organic-inorganic hybrid films.     

透明抗静电多功能超疏水薄膜的制备

采用提拉法在聚酰亚胺薄膜表面分步涂覆了银纳米线及疏水纳米二氧化硅, 分别构筑了导电网络及超疏水涂层, 制备了超疏水抗静电透明薄膜. 研究结果表明, 超疏水抗静电透明薄膜保持了较高的透光性, 其透光率高于90%. 同时, 银纳米线网络的构筑有效增加了超疏水抗静电透明薄膜的导电性, 使其表面电阻介于10⁶~10¹⁰ Ω之间, 达到了抗静电要求. 水滴在该薄膜表面静态接触角高达156.4°, 滚动角小于1°, 展现了优异的超疏水特性. 通过导电网络及疏水涂层的构筑, 实现了透明及抗静电超疏水多功能的统一.     

Green Approach to the Fabrication of Superhydrophobic Mesh Surface for Oil/Water Separation

We report a simple and environment friendly method to fabricate superhydrophobic metallic mesh surfaces for oil/water separation. The obtained mesh surface exhibits superhydrophobicity and superoleophilicity after it was dried in an oven at 200 °C for 10 min. A rough silver layer is formed on the mesh surface after immersion, and the spontaneous adsorption of airborne carbon contaminants on the silver surface lower the surface free energy of the mesh. No low‐surface‐energy reagents and/or volatile organic solvents are used. In addition, we demonstrate that by using the mesh box, oils can be separated and collected from the surface of water repeatedly, and that high separation efficiencies of larger than 92 % are retained for various oils. Moreover, the superhydrophobic mesh also possesses excellent corrosion resistance and thermal stability. Hence, these superhydrophobic meshes might be good candidates for the practical separation of oil from the surface of water.     

Formation of superhydrophobic surfaces by biomimetic silicification and fluorination

The amazing water repellency of many biological surfaces, exemplified by lotus leaves, has recently received a great deal of interest. These surfaces, called superhydrophobic surfaces, exhibit water contact angles larger than 150 degrees and a low contact angle hysteresis because of both their low surface energy and heterogeneously rough structures. In this paper, we suggest a biomimetic method, "biosilicification", for generating heterogeneously rough structures and fabricating superhydrophobic surfaces. The superhydrophobic surface was prepared by a combination of the formation of heterogeneously rough, nanosphere-like silica structures through biosilicification and the formation of self-assembled monolayers of fluorosilane on the surface. The resulting surface exhibited the water contact angle of 160.1 degrees and the very low water contact angle hysteresis of only 2.3 degrees, which are definite characteristics of superhydrophobic surfaces. The superhydrophobic property of our system probably resulted from the air trapped in the rough surface. The wetting behavior on the surface was in the heterogeneous regime, which was totally supported by Cassie-Baxter equation.     

UV and thermally stable superhydrophobic coatings from sol-gel processing

A method for the preparation of inorganic superhydrophobic silica coatings using sol-gel processing with tetramethoxysilane and isobutyltrimethoxysilane as precursors is described. Incorporation of isobutyltrimethoxysilane into silica layers resulted in the existence of hydrophobic isobutyl surface groups, thereby generating surface hydrophobicity. When combined with the surface roughness that resulted from sol-gel processing, a superhydrophobic surface was achieved. This surface showed improved UV and thermal stability compared to superhydrophobic surfaces generated from polybutadiene by plasma etching. Under prolonged UV tests (ASTM D 4329), these surfaces gradually lost superhydrophobic character. However, when the as-prepared superhydrophobic surface was treated at 500 degrees C to remove the organic moieties and covered with a fluoroalkyl layer by a perfluorooctylsilane treatment, the surface regained superhydrophobicity. The UV and thermal stability of these surfaces was maintained upon exposure to temperatures up to 400 degrees C and UV testing times of 5500 h. Contact angles remained >160 degrees with contact angle hysteresis approximately 2 degrees.     

Large-area unmodified superhydrophobic copper substrate can be prepared by an electroless replacement deposition

Using an electroless replacement deposition method, large-area superhydrophobic metal substrate could be obtained. The superhydrophobic surfaces were prepared via a replacement reaction between copper substrate and HAuCl(4) solution. The roughness of the copper substrate increased much after the replacement reaction. X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) pattern and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy have proved that gold, CuCl and Cu(2)O formed on the surface of copper substrate after the replacement reaction. The surface showed remarkable superhydrophobic properties with a contact angle higher than 150 degrees without any modification with a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) of long chain thiol or perfluoro molecules.     

Thermally stable and transparent superhydrophobic sol–gel coatings by spray method

A facile method was developed for the fabrication of the methyltriethoxysilane based transparent and superhydrophobic coating on glass substrates. The transparent and hydrophobic coatings were deposited on the glass substrates, using spray deposition method followed by surface modification process. A spray deposition method generates hierarchical morphology and post surface modification with monofunctional trimethylchlorosilane decreases the surface free energy of coating. These combined effects of synthesis produces bio-inspired superhydrophobic surface. The deposited coating surface shows high optical transparency, micro-nano scale hierarchical structures, improved hydrophobic thermal stability, static water contact angle of about 167° ± 1°, low sliding angle about 2° ± 1° and stable superhydrophobic nature. This paper provides the very simple sol–gel approach to the fabrication of optically transparent, thermally stable superhydrophobic coating on glass substrates. This fabrication strategy may easily extend to the industrial scale up and high-technology fields.     

Fabrication of superhydrophobic cellulose-based materials through a solution-immersion process

An industrial waterproof reagent [(potassium methyl siliconate) (PMS)] was used for fabricating a superhydrophobic surface on a cellulose-based material (cotton fabric or paper) through a solution-immersion method. This method involves a hydrogen bond assembly and a polycondensation process. The silanol, which was formed by a reaction of PMS aqueous solution with CO 2, was assembled on the cellulose molecule surface via hydrogen bond interactions. The polymethylsilsesquioxane coatings were prepared by a polycondensation reaction of the hydroxyl between cellulose and silanol. The superhydrophobic cellulose materials were characterized by FTIR spectroscopy, thermogravimetry, and surface analysis (XPS, FESEM, AFM, and contact angle measurements). Analytical characterization revealed that nanoscale roughness protuberances uniformly covered the surface, thus transforming the cellulose from superhydrophilic to superhydrophobic with a water contact angle of 157 degrees . The superhydrophobic coatings were satisfactory with regard to both chemical and mechanical durability, and because of the transparency of the coatings the native cotton fabric displayed no changes with regard to either morphology or color. The easy availability of the materials and simplicity of this method render it convenient for mass production.     

超疏水低粘着铜表面制备及其防覆冰性能

用喷砂处理在铜片表面形成微米级丘陵状凹坑,再用表面氧化处理在铜片表面制备菊花花瓣状CuO纳米片.通过喷砂-表面氧化处理在铜片表面成功构建了微米-纳米复合结构,这种表面氟化后与水滴的接触角高达161°,滚动角低至1°,显示出优异的超疏水性和很低的粘着性.低温下,这种表面与水滴间的热量交换较小,水滴不易凝结,有效地提高了抗结霜性.抗结霜性良好的超疏水铜有望在热交换器或低温运行设备等领域获得应用,这种简便的超疏水铜表面的制备方法也给其它工程材料超疏水表面的工业化制备提供了一个思路.     

Application of laser micro- and nanotexturing for the fabrication of superhydrophobic corrosion-resistant coatings on aluminum

A new efficient method for the fabrication of corrosion-resistant composite superhydrophobic coatings on aluminum and its alloys is presented. The laser micro- and nanotexturing of the surface combined with the deposition of a hydrophobic agent makes it possible to obtain superhydrophobic coatings with unique properties on aluminum materials. The complex studies by electrochemical methods and wettability analysis showed that the proposed type of coatings is characterized by very high resistance to corrosion, including pitting resistance, and by the durability of the superhydrophobic state upon prolonged contact with aqueous chloride-containing media.     

Synthesis and characterization of PMMA-based superhydrophobic surfaces

Recently, superhydrophobic surfaces are gaining much interest because they may be employed in a series of applications, spanning from the realization of self-cleaning surfaces to microfluidics to special water-impermeable tissues allowing perspiration. It is well-known that superhydrophobicity strictly depends on the combination of superficial micro- and nano-structures. Then, key factors in the process of surface synthesis are the parameters which will define the surface conformation. In this work, we deal with the fabrication of polymer-based superhydrophobic surfaces. We developed a new method to have a good control of the structure of the synthesised surface. A high stability of the superhydrophobic character during time was obtained. Moreover, the synthesis process is green and easily transferable to industry for large production.     

Stable superhydrophobic polybenzoxazine surfaces over a wide pH range

In this study, we report on a simple two-step casting process designed to create a stable superhydrophobic surface. This method possesses the advantages of being both simple and inexpensive as well as utilizing non-fluorine-containing compounds. Most interestingly, we found that the as-prepared surface possesses superhydrophobic properties not only for pure water but also for corrosive water under both acidic and basic conditions. Furthermore, the superhydrophobic polybenzoxazine surfaces had excellent environmental stability with regard to both heating and organic solvent treatment in terms of the contact angle to water.     

溶胶凝胶法制备仿生超疏水性薄膜

通过溶胶-凝胶(Sol-Gel)法和自组装(Self-assembled)制备了具有超疏水性的薄膜, 水滴在该薄膜上的平衡静态接触角为155°～157°, 滑动角为3°～5°. 通过扫描电子显微镜(SEM)观察薄膜微观表面, 发现该薄膜表面分布了双层结构(Binary structure)的微纳米粗糙度的微凸体, 上表层微米微凸体的平均直径为0. 2 μm, 下表层纳米微凸体的平均直径约为13 nm, 其分布与荷叶表面的结构极其相似. 用X射线光电子能谱(XPS)对薄膜表面元素进行了成分分析, 结果表明, 其表面存在大量的F, Cl等元素, 它能显著降低薄膜表面的表面能. 薄膜超疏水性的原因可能是, 通过硅片经溶胶粒子表面制备的薄膜具有合适的表面粗糙度, 再经过全氟辛基三氯甲硅烷(FOTMS)化学修饰后, 薄膜表面能进一步降低, 这两个条件的有机结合就使得薄膜产生了超疏水性.     

Facile method to fabricate raspberry-like particulate films for superhydrophobic surfaces

A facile method using layer-by-layer assembly of silica particles is proposed to prepare raspberry-like particulate films for the fabrication of superhydrophobic surfaces. Silica particles 0.5 microm in diameter were used to prepare a surface with a microscale roughness. Nanosized silica particles were then assembled on the particulate film to construct a finer structure on top of the coarse one. After surface modification with dodecyltrichlorosilane, the advancing and receding contact angles of water on the dual-sized structured surface were 169 and 165 degrees , respectively. The scale ratio of the micro/nano surface structure and the regularity of the particulate films on the superhydrophobic surface performance are discussed.     

Mimicking natural superhydrophobic surfaces and grasping the wetting process: a review on recent progress in preparing superhydrophobic surfaces

A typical superhydrophobic (ultrahydrophobic) surface can repel water droplets from wetting itself, and the contact angle of a water droplet resting on a superhydrophobic surface is greater than 150°, which means extremely low wettability is achievable on superhydrophobic surfaces. Many superhydrophobic surfaces (both manmade and natural) normally exhibit micro- or nanosized roughness as well as hierarchical structure, which somehow can influence the surface's water repellence. As the research into superhydrophobic surfaces goes deeper and wider, it is becoming more important to both academic fields and industrial applications. In this work, the most recent progress in preparing manmade superhydrophobic surfaces through a variety of methodologies, particularly within the past several years, and the fundamental theories of wetting phenomena related to superhydrophobic surfaces are reviewed. We also discuss the perspective of natural superhydrophobic surfaces utilized as mimicking models. The discussion focuses on how the superhydrophobic property is promoted on solid surfaces and emphasizes the effect of surface roughness and structure in particular. This review aims to enable researchers to perceive the inner principles of wetting phenomena and employ suitable methods for creation and modification of superhydrophobic surfaces.     

Facile preparation of superhydrophobic nanorod surfaces through ion-beam irradiation

Obtaining superhydrophobic surfaces for their application in electronics and flexible wearable devices remains a significant challenge. Most previously reported methods for obtaining superhydrophobic surfaces involve complex and expensive preparation techniques and thus cannot be used for practical applications. Ion-beam irradiation is a simple and promising method for fabricating superhydrophobic nanostructures on large areas at a low cost. Ion-beam irradiation using argon and oxygen gases was used to prepare silica nanorod structures on glass substrates. This study is not just a modification of the surface of nanoparticles, but a change in nanoparticle shape. The nanorods were subsequently treated with perfluorooctyltriethoxysilane to obtain superhydrophobicity. The surface of the silica nanorods exhibited a static water contact angle of 153°, indicating superhydrophobicity. The combination of rough structures of silica nanorods and low surface energy resulted in superhydrophobicity. The surface properties were evaluated in detail using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The proposed method is facile, inexpensive, and can be used for the large-scale production of nanorod structures for potential industrial applications.