Fabrication of fluorinated raspberry particles and their use as building blocks for the construction of superhydrophobic films to mimic the wettabilities from lotus leaves to rose petals

Abstract

Reported herein is the preparation of poly((glycidyl methacrylate)-co-(ethylene glycol dimethacrylate)) raspberry-like colloidal particles (also denoted as RPs) bearing micro-/nano-scale surface roughness and the fabrication of superhydrophobic films with tunable adhesion derived from the RPs after their fluorination. The RPs were prepared via the one-pot dispersion polymerization of glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA). The size and the surface roughness of the RPs can be readily tuned by adjusting the polymerization parameters, including the temperature, the feed monomer mole ratio, the initiator concentration, and so on. A possible mechanism of the formation of RPs was proposed according to the morphological evolution observed during the polymerization process as monitored via transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and size variation as evaluated with dynamic light scattering (DLS) measurements. Fluorinated RPs (also denoted as FRPs) with various fluorination degrees were further prepared by reaction between the epoxy groups of the RPs and the thiol group of perfluorodecanethiol (PFDT). The raspberry-like morphology of the FRPs was maintained as confirmed via SEM observation. By only changing the surface chemistry rather than the roughness, superhydrophobic films with tunable superhydrophobic properties capable of mimicking wettabilities ranging from those of lotus leaves to those of rose petals were easily prepared by dropcasting dispersions of FRPs onto glass substrates. † Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See

Wetting Transition from Lotus Leaf to Rose Petal using Modified Fly Ash

“…Most of the techniques used to develop surfaces with dual adhesion are based on lithography or other molding based techniques which involve high cost and multistep fabrication process . However, other techniques which develop tunable adhesion only by surface chemical modification are also reported in the literature . Wang et al .…”

Designing superhydrophobic surface based on fluoropolymer–silica nanocomposite via RAFT‐mediated polymerization‐induced self‐assembly

“…This suggests the need for a simple and water‐borne process which is environment‐friendly and allows large‐scale production . In this context, the fabrication of raspberry colloid is well known to develop SHS via a water‐borne process . Most of the approaches to prepare raspberry colloids deal with the decoration of nanoparticles like nanosilica or nano‐TiO 2 over the polymer sphere .…”

Electrodeposited Poly(thieno[3,2‐b]thiophene) Films for the Templateless Formation of Porous Structures by Galvanostatic and Pulse Deposition

“…They can be found in nature in rose petals, gecko feet, and cicada wings, for example. To achieve both behaviors, various strategies can be used, such as plasma, dispersion polymerization, lithography phase separation, electrospinning, or electropolymerization …”