Self-Stratifying Particulate Coating for Robust Superhydrophobic and Latex-Repellent Surface

Abstract

A technique for preparing superhydrophobic and natural latex-repellent surface requires at least two fabrication components: surface roughness, and surface layer with low free energy. Here, multiscale surface roughness in micro-/nanoscales with low surface energy can be simultaneously achieved through the deposition of fluoroalkyl-functionalized silica aggregates. However, the mechanical durability of such film remains problematic. Therefore, third component such as polymer binder was incorporated carefully to improve adhesion between film-substrate interface without deteriorating surface roughness and surface energy. In this work, we employed self-stratifying coating technique to induce vertical phase separation between particles and polymer during film drying, such that the silica aggregates densely accumulated on the top surface, while polymer binder concentrated near the film bottom. The governing transports during film stratification process involve diffusion and convection driven by evaporation. Thus, this research focused on the effect of drying temperature and evaporation rate on the anti-wetting performance of the coating. The results showed that the liquid-repellent properties of the surface improve with increasing drying temperature, indicating the convection-dominated transport that induced substantial particle trap at the film surface. With polymer binder added, the coatings still showed decent superhydrophobic and natural latex-repellent properties with maximum contact angles 166.4°±0.6° and 157.5°±0.5°, as well as minimum sliding angles 2.7°±0.3° and 2.9°±0.2° for water and natural latex respectively. Also, AFM result revealed that significant surface roughness of 581 ± 18 nm was still achievable even at high blending mass ratio of polymer binder up to half of the silica weight.