Super‐hydrophobic surfaces, with a water contact angle (CA) greater than 150°, have attracted much interest for both fundamental research and practical applications. Recent studies on lotus and rice leaves reveal that a super‐hydrophobic surface with both a large CA and small sliding angle (α) needs the cooperation of micro‐ and nanostructures, and the arrangement of the microstructures on this surface can influence the way a water droplet tends to move. These results from the natural world provide a guide for constructing artificial super‐hydrophobic surfaces and designing surfaces with controllable wettability. Accordingly, super‐hydrophobic surfaces of polymer nanofibers and differently patterned aligned carbon nanotube (ACNT) films have been fabricated.
Hierarchical micropapillae and nanofolds are known to exist on the petals' surfaces of red roses. These micro-and nanostructures provide a sufficient roughness for superhydrophobicity and yet at the same time a high adhesive force with water. A water droplet on the surface of the petal appears spherical in shape, which cannot roll off even when the petal is turned upside down. We define this phenomenon as the "petal effect" as compared with the popular "lotus effect". Artificial fabrication of biomimic polymer films, with well-defined nanoembossed structures obtained by duplicating the petal's surface, indicates that the superhydrophobic surface and the adhesive petal are in Cassie impregnating wetting state.
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