| AVS 60th International Symposium and Exhibition | |
| Advanced Surface Engineering | Thursday Sessions |
| Session SE-ThP |
| Session: | Poster Session |
| Presenter: | B. Dyett, The University of Melbourne, Australia |
| Authors: | B. Dyett, The University of Melbourne, Australia A. Wu, The University of Melbourne, Australia R. Lamb, The University of Melbourne, Australia |
| Correspondent: | Click to Email |
Characterized as exhibiting water droplet contact angles > 150° and sliding angles < 5 °, superhydrophobic films have attracted considerable research attention as a result of their remarkable non-wetting properties and potential applications in self-cleaning, anti-fouling and anti-icing. The combination of hydrophobic chemistry and surface roughness necessary for imparting such non-wetting characteristics presents a challenge towards industrial applicability due to the intrinsic frail nature of highly rough surfaces.[1] Sol-gel synthesis offers a versatile and scalable means for producing superhydrophobic films. However, traditional sol-gel approaches are often reliant on ‘needle-like’ aggregations of nanoparticles to impart surface roughness. This surface structure, whilst ideal for minimizing solid-water interactions is inherently fragile.[2, 3] Upon contact, high aspect-ratio asperities experience excessive pressures usually exceeding the mechanical properties of the material[4], consequently such superhydrophobic films are very easy to abrade and damage. To overcome this challenge a templating method was used to engineer more robust structures. Discrete polymer spheres were embedded within an alkoxysilane sol-gel to form a continuous, robust, thin film. Roughness was then engineered into the film by thermally degrading the polymer spheres within the gel network, leaving behind crater-like structures with durability far exceeding its predecessor’s. The resultant crater-like films exhibited pencil hardness exceeding 4H, eclipsing traditional films’ pencil hardness, typically of the order 8B – HB. This avenue may provide a scalable approach for controlling roughness features in durable superhydrophobic films and allow for large scale application in areas of self-cleaning and anti-fouling.
References
1. Verho, T., et al., Advanced Materials, 2011. (5): p. 673-678.
2. Nakajima, A., K. Hashimoto, and T. Watanabe, Monatshefte für Chemie/Chemical Monthly, 2001. (1): p. 31-41.
3. Nakajima, A., et al., Thin Solid Films, 2000. (1–2): p. 140-143.
4. Bhushan, B. and M. Nosonovsky, Acta materialia, 2003. (14): p. 4331-4345.