Chapters authored
TiO2 -Based Surfaces with Special Wettability – From Nature to Biomimetic Application
Super-wetting/antiwetting surfaces with extremely high contrast of surface energy and liquid adhesion have attracted a lot of interest in both fundamental research and industry. Various types of special wetting surfaces can be constructed by adjusting the topographical structure and chemical composition. In this chapter, recent advance of the super-wetting/antiwetting surfaces with special solid/liquid adhesion has been reviewed, with a focus on the biomimetic fabrication and applications of TiO2-based surfaces. Special super-wettability examples include lotus-leaf-inspired surfaces with low adhesion, rose-petal-inspired surfaces with high adhesion, spider silk bio-inspired surfaces with directional adhesion, fish-scale-inspired underwater superoleophobic surface, and artificial surfaces with controllable or stimuli-responsive liquid adhesion. In addition, we will review some potential applications related to artificial antiwetting surface with controllable adhesion, e.g., self-cleaning, antifogging/anti-icing, micro-droplet manipulation, fog/water collection, water/oil separation, anti-bioadhesion, micro-template for patterning, and friction reduction. Finally, the difficulty and prospects of this renascent and rapidly developing field are also briefly proposed and discussed.
Part of the book: Wetting and Wettability