Advanced Materials and Technologies Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering , Virginia Tech , Blacksburg , Virginia 24061-0238 , United States.
Langmuir. 2018 Mar 13;34(10):3159-3169. doi: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.7b02227. Epub 2017 Nov 17.
Superhydrophobic surfaces have myriad industrial applications, yet their practical utilization has been limited by their poor mechanical durability and longevity. We present a low-cost, facile process to develop superhydrophobic copper-based coatings via an electrodeposition route, that addresses this limitation. Through electrodeposition, a stable, multiscale, cauliflower shaped fractal morphology was obtained and upon modification by stearic acid, the prepared coatings show extreme water repellency with contact angle of 162 ± 2° and roll-off angle of about 3°. Systematic studies are presented on coatings fabricated under different processing conditions to demonstrate good durability, mechanical and underwater stability, corrosion resistance, and self-cleaning effect. The study also presents an approach for rejuvenation of slippery superhydrophobic nature (roll-off angle <10°) on the surfaces after long-term water immersion. The presented process can be scaled to larger, durable coatings with controllable wettability for diverse applications.
具有超疏水表面的材料在诸多工业领域都有广泛的应用，但由于其机械耐久性和使用寿命较差，其实际应用受到了限制。我们提出了一种低成本、简便的方法，通过电沉积工艺在铜基底上制备出具有超疏水性的涂层，解决了这一限制。通过电沉积，得到了稳定的、多尺度的、像菜花一样的分形形态，经过硬脂酸修饰后，所制备的涂层表现出极好的超疏水性，接触角为 162±2°，滚落角约为 3°。系统研究了不同处理条件下制备的涂层，展示了其良好的耐久性、机械稳定性和水下稳定性、耐腐蚀性和自清洁效果。该研究还提出了一种方法，可使经过长期水浸泡后的超疏水表面（滚落角 <10°）重新恢复滑溜的超疏水性质。所提出的工艺可以扩展到大尺寸、耐用的涂层上，实现对不同应用的润湿性控制。
