Designing a Network of Crystalline Polymers for a Scalable, Nonfluorinated, Healable and Amphiphobic Solid Slippery Interface

Abstract

The fluorinated‐liquid infused amphiphobic slippery interfaces exhibiting superior sliding of the beaded oil/water droplets, often suffer from durability and contamination issues. Here, the ability of 1) hexagonal packing of hydrocarbon sides in a selected “comb‐like” polymer and 2) its reversible phase transition at 51 °C was rationally exploited to achieve temperature‐assisted rapid (<1 minute) and repetitive (50 times) self‐healable amphiphobic solid‐slippery coating on both planar and geometrically‐complex substrates. The selected “comb‐like” polymer was strategically infused in a porous, hydrophilic and thick (≈4.8 μm) polymeric coating. The resultant solid and smooth interface exhibited sliding of beaded droplets of various liquids, including droplets of water, polar (ethanol, 1‐propanol, 1‐hexanol, DMSO, DMF), and non‐polar (decane, dodecane, diiodomethane) organic solvents, edible (vegetable oil), motor, engine (petrol, diesel, kerosene) and crude oils.

Covalent crosslinking chemistry for controlled modulation of nanometric roughness and surface free energy

“…43–47 To address this challenge, recently solid–slippery interfaces were introduced following a few approaches, i.e. , (1) infusion of phase transitioning solid lubricants (polymer and paraffin) in a porous matrix, 48–53 (2) attachment of a flexible polymer, 54–60 (3) growth of polymer brushes, 61–63 (4) layer-by-layer surface growth of nanoparticles 53,64 and deposition of nanoparticles, 65,66 and (5) assembly of oligomers. 67–70 Such earlier reported approaches mainly concentrated on minimizing the nanometric roughness to achieve sliding of beaded droplets of water and organic solvents.…”

Multi-stimulus Response Behavior of Biomimetic Autocrine Waxy Materials for Potential Self-Constructing Surface Microstructures

“…Biomimetic autocrine waxy materials (AWMs), inspired by the renewable solid epidermal waxes of terrestrial plants, are attracting increasing attention. − Scientists have found that the waxy layer is an organic mixture consisting mainly of C 20 -C 34 aliphatic substances , and usually exhibits hydrophobic properties. , By mimicking the waxy layer in leaves, Wang et al reported a solid organogel material with a regenerable sacrificial alkane surface layer and demonstrated an important role in combating solid deposition . Some scholars have exploited the rapid autocrine ability and hydrophobicity of AWMs, and the as-prepared materials quickly and spontaneously recovered their superhydrophobicity even after being subjected to severe plasma etching .…”