What is it about?
Our work provides deep insights on the effect of surface roughness and chemical composition on wettability, which is essential for several interesting applications such as anti-wetting glass or fabrics. We have developed a methodology for the design of surfaces composed of regular arrays of pillars, featuring patterns at the micrometric scale. For instance, we can locally introduce chemical heterogeneities in the form of thin polymeric films on the top of the pillars, which can drastically improve the hydrophobic properties of the micropatterned surface. The geometrical design of the micropatterns has been developed based on computational simulations, which have been proven to be very useful to predict wetting-state transitions. The combination of computational tools and advanced microfabrication has allowed us to manufacture such surfaces and proof the advantage of combined roughness and chemical heterogeneity effects. The initial studies were made on Si substrates, in which the controlled, patterned polymeric pillar arrays can be easily made, with high dimensional precision and scalability. The results allowed us to validate the proposed computational simulations, used to predict transition states for the different wetting models. These studies have been further expanded to fully polymeric polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) films for the obtaining of superhydrophobic flexible polymeric surfaces, a highly desirable example for many practical applications.
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Why is it important?
A validated method to simulate, and even predict, wetting-state transitions depending on the parameters defining the micropatterns is very advantageous for the faster design and development of rough and heterogeneous surfaces with engineered wetting properties. Our affordable computational approach can provide hints about the expected wetting state without having to manufacture many variations of the arrays, thus, simplifying the screening of structures and reducing material and time costs. Moreover, we have proven the efficiency of the selective polymeric coating on the top of pillars, the use of low amounts of chemical products to enhance the wetting properties as very relevant from a practical and industrial point of view. In this sense, the rationalization of surface wetting developed in this study envisions a wide range of advantages for its practical deployment in the near future.
Perspectives
Our developed methods provide a significant advancement on the fundamental knowledge of wettability as well as the prediction of transition between distinctive wetting-states. In brief, we answer some of the questions about how to rationally modulate surface-wettability. Moreover, the computational approach has potential applications for the quantitative prediction and screening of physical-chemical parameters to simplify the development of surfaces with specific or improved wetting properties. We really hope this study will contribute to the development of new devices and to serve as inspiration for better understanding of the parameters affecting wettability.
Gerard Martí Balaguer
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Rational design of static wetting on roughness-engineered heterogeneous surfaces, Physics of Fluids, December 2024, American Institute of Physics,
DOI: 10.1063/5.0237554.
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