Frank Schellenberger

How Water Advances on Superhydrophobic Surfaces

Superliquid repellency can be achieved by nano- and microstructuring surfaces in such a way that protrusions entrap air underneath the liquid. It is still not known how the three-phase contact line advances on such structured surfaces. In contrast to a smooth surface, where the contact line can advance continuously, on a superliquid-repellent surface, the contact line has to overcome an air gap between protrusions. Here, we apply laser scanning confocal microscopy to get the first microscopic videos of water drops advancing on a superhydrophobic array of micropillars. In contrast to common belief, the liquid surface gradually bends down until it touches the top face of the next micropillars. The apparent advancing contact angle is 180°. On the receding side, pinning to the top faces of the micropillars determines the apparent receding contact angle. Based on these observations, we propose that the apparent receding contact angle should be used for characterizing superliquid-repellent surfaces rather than the apparent advancing contact angle and hysteresis.

Liquid drops impacting superamphiphobic coatings.

The dynamics of liquid drops impacting superamphiphobic coatings is studied by high-speed video microscopy. Superamphiphobic coatings repel water and oils. The coating consists of a fractal-like hydrophobized silica network. Mixtures of ethanol-water and glycerin-water are chosen to investigate the influence of interfacial tension and viscosity on spreading and retraction dynamics. Drop spreading is dominated by inertia. At low impact velocity, the drops completely rebound. However, the contact time increases with impact velocity, whereas the restitution coefficient decreases. We suggest that the drop temporarily impales the superamphiphobic coating, although the drop completely rebounds. From an estimate of the pressure, it can be concluded that impalement is dominated by depinning rather than sagging. With increasing velocity, the drops partially pin, and an increasing amount of liquid remains on the coating. A time-resolved study of the retraction dynamics reveals two well-separated phases: a fast inertia-dominated phase followed by a slow decrease of the contact diameter of the drop. The crossover occurs when the diameter of the retracting drop matches the diameter of the drop before impact. We suggest that the depth of impalement increases with impact velocity, where impalement is confined to the initial impact zone of the drop. If the drop partially pins on the coating, the depth of impalement exceeds a depth, preventing the whole drop from being removed during the retraction phase.

3D Imaging of Water-Drop Condensation on Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Lubricant-Impregnated Surfaces.

Condensation of water from the atmosphere on a solid surface is an ubiquitous phenomenon in nature and has diverse technological applications, e.g. in heat and mass transfer. We investigated the condensation kinetics of water drops on a lubricant-impregnated surface, i.e., a micropillar array impregnated with a non-volatile ionic liquid. Growing and coalescing drops were imaged in 3D using a laser scanning confocal microscope equipped with a temperature and humidity control. Different stages of condensation can be discriminated. On a lubricant-impregnated hydrophobic micropillar array these are: (1) Nucleation on the lubricant surface. (2) Regular alignment of water drops between micropillars and formation of a three-phase contact line on a bottom of the substrate. (3) Deformation and bridging by coalescence which eventually leads to a detachment of the drops from the bottom substrate. The drop-substrate contact does not result in breakdown of the slippery behaviour. Contrary, on a lubricant-impregnated hydrophilic micropillar array, the condensed water drops replace the lubricant. Consequently, the surface loses its slippery property. Our results demonstrate that a Wenzel-like to Cassie transition, required to maintain the facile removal of condensed water drops, can be induced by well-chosen surface hydrophobicity.

Functional superhydrophobic surfaces made of Janus micropillars.

Particle coated micropillar arrays having hydrophobic sidewalls and hydrophilic silica tops are fabricated, enabling the top sides to be selectively post-functionalized. The so termed Janus pillars remain in the Cassie state even after chemical modification of the top faces.