Chen L., Henein G., Liddle J.A.
National Institute of Standards and Technology, US
Keywords: nano, plasma, super-hydrophilic, super-hydrophobic, surface
Superhydrophobic and superhydrophilic surfaces are generally made by modifying the surface with chemistry and introducing roughness or patterns on surfaces. The processes are generally complex and time-consuming. In this paper, we introduce a simple and fast plasma process to form super-hydrophobic and/or super-hydrophilic surfaces. The process includes plasma induced surface nano-pattern formation, substrate etching and surface chemical modification. By using this process, we can make super-hydrophobic or super-hydrophilic surfaces easily. Even more, we can incorporate both super-hydrophobic and super-hydrophilic properties on one surface and switch the surface property between super-hydrophobic and super-hydrophilic. This environmentally friendly and economic process can potentially be used in a variety of applications including self-cleaning glass, stain-resistant textiles, anti-fogging windows, microfluidic chips, drug delivery systems, separations, and protein concentrators
Journal: TechConnect Briefs
Volume: 3, Nanotechnology 2009: Biofuels, Renewable Energy, Coatings, Fluidics and Compact Modeling
Published: May 3, 2009
Pages: 194 - 197
Industry sector: Advanced Materials & Manufacturing
Topic: Coatings, Surfaces & Membranes
ISBN: 978-1-4398-1784-1