Inspired by the co-coupling of the non-smooth structure and the waxy layer inducing the hydrophobicity of dragonfly wing surface,we developed a simple and versatile method to fabricate a superhydrophobic surface with the dragonfly wing structures.In this work,Ag nanorods grew on highly ordered anodic aluminum oxide(AAO) surface via a galvanic reduction approach.Then the AAO-Ag multilayer was fabricated.Furthermore,the surface free energy of AAO-Ag multilayer was reduced by modifying with perfluorodecanethiol.The modified AAO-Ag multilayer was superhydrophobic and the static contact angle reached as high as 168°.X-ray photoelectron spectra(XPS) were used to characterize the chemical structure of the obtained products.The morphologies of AAO-Ag multilayer was similar to microstructure of dragonfly wing surface and presented hierarchical rough structure.The results showed that the co-coupling of the rough structure and low surface free energy induced the superhydrophobic performance of the AAO-Ag multilayer surface.
The microstructure, wettability and chemical composition of the butterfly wing surfaces were investigated by a scanning electron microscope, a contact angle meter and a Fourier transform infrared spectrometer. The micro/nano structural models for hydrophobicity of the butterfly wing surfaces were established on the basis of the Cassie equation. The hydrophobicity mechanisms were discussed from the perspective of biological coupling. The butterfly wing surfaces are composed of naturally hydrophobic material and possess micro/nano hierarchical structures, including primary structure （micrometric scales）, secondary structure （nano longitudinal ridges and lateral bridges） and tertiary structure （nano stripes）. The wing surfaces exhibit high hydrophobicity （contact angle 138°-157°） and low adhesion （sliding angle 1°-3°）. The micromorphology and self-cleaning performance of the wing surfaces demonstrate remarkable anisotropism. The special complex wettability ascribes to a coupling effect of the material element and the structure element. In microdimension, the smaller the width and the bigger the spacing of the scale, the stronger the hydrophobicity of the wing surfaces. In nano-dimension, the smaller the height and the smaller the width and the bigger the spacing of the longitudinal ridge, the stronger the hydrophobicity of the wing surfaces. This work promotes our understanding of the hydrophobicity mechanism of bio-surfaces and may bring inspiration for biomimetic design and preparation of smart interfacial materials.
Many biological surfaces possess unusual micro-nano hierarchical structures that could influence their wettability, which provide new methods for the construction of novel materials. In this work, silver nanoparticles were successfully coated on the surface of stainless steel needle by a simple electroless replacement reaction process between the AgNO3 solution and the activated stainless steel needle. After the replacement reaction, porous micro/nanostructures were formed on the surface of the stainless steel needle. By modifying long chains ofthiol molecules, the stainless steel needle exhibited good super-hydrophobic property with a contact angle greater than 150°. Moreover, the silver coated stainless steel needle （bionic needle） showed strong antibacterial activity against the gram-negative bacterium Escherichia coli （E. colO. By calculating the area of the inhibition zone against E. coil formed on agar medium, the antibacterial activity of the bionic needle with the contact angle of 152° is much better than that with the contact angle of 138°. The as-prepared bionic needle with both super-hydrophobie and antibacterial properties has the potential to be applied in modem medical devices.
