Discover Top Posts Tagged with #superomniphobic

Laser-made surface repels nearly any liquid, even after fivefold stretching

Researchers from North Carolina State University have used laser ablation to create ultra-stretchable, superomniphobic materials without the use of harsh chemical solvents. The materials—which are useful in applications ranging from soft robotics to artificial skin patches—retain their superomniphobic (i.e., super-repellent) properties when stretched up to five times their initial length and at over 5,000 stretch cycles. How superomniphobic materials are made "Superomniphobic materials can repel virtually any liquid—such as extremely harsh acids, bases or solvents—just as well as they can water," says Arun Kumar Kota, associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at NC State. "They are useful in a wide range of applications, such as soft robots, for example, which may need materials that can withstand harsh environments, stretch and change shape." Kota is the corresponding author of the research that appears in the journal Matter.

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In the March issue of Materials World, we write about nanotube-covered titanium that could be used as blood-repellent medical implants. This can be used as clot-resistant surgical implants, described by Dr Arun Kota as ‘the Holy Grail of the medical device industry.’

I’m reminded of a previous demonstration of tuneable superomniphobic surfaces from Kota back in 2014. Again working with titanium, the coating is able to trap certain low surface tension liquids on a variable scale. Also, it looks kinda cool.

#titanium #surface #tuneable #superomniphobic #kota #arun #materials

New superomniphobic glass soars high on butterfly wings using machine learning

Engineers develop new superclear, supertransparent, stain-resistant, anti-fogging nanostructured glass based on butterfly wing

Glass for technologies like displays, tablets, laptops, smartphones, and solar cells need to pass light through, but could benefit from a surface that repels water, dirt, oil, and other liquids. Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh's Swanson School of Engineering have created a nanostructure glass that takes inspiration from the wings of the glasswing butterfly to create a new type of glass that is not only very clear across a wide variety of wavelengths and angles, but is also antifogging.

The team recently published a paper detailing their findings: "Creating Glasswing-Butterfly Inspired Durable Antifogging Omniphobic Supertransmissive, Superclear Nanostructured Glass Through Bayesian Learning and Optimization" in Materials Horizons (doi:10.1039/C9MH00589G). They recently presented this work at the ICML conference in the "Climate Change: How Can AI Help?" workshop.

The nanostructured glass has random nanostructures, like the glasswing butterfly wing, that are smaller than the wavelengths of visible light. This allows the glass to have a very high transparency of 99.5% when the random nanostructures are on both sides of the glass. This high transparency can reduce the brightness and power demands on displays that could, for example, extend battery life. The glass is antireflective across higher angles, improving viewing angles. The glass also has low haze, less than 0.1%, which results in very clear images and text.

A novel and practical fab-route for superomniphobic liquid-free surfaces

A joint research team led by Professor Hee Tak Kim and Shin-Hyun Kim in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at KAIST developed a fabrication technology that can inexpensively produce surfaces capable of repelling liquids, including water and oil.

The team used the photofluidization of azobenzene molecule-containing polymers to generate a superomniphobic surface which can be applied for developing stain-free fabrics, non-biofouling medical tubing, and corrosion-free surfaces.

Mushroom-shaped surface textures, also called doubly re-entrant structures, are known to be the most effective surface structure that enhances resistance against liquid invasion, thereby exhibiting superior superomniphobic property.

However, the existing procedures for their fabrication are highly delicate, time-consuming, and costly. Moreover, the materials required for the fabrication are restricted to an inflexible and expensive silicon wafer, which limits the practical use of the surface.

Superomniphobic tape adheres to any surface

Arun Kota, assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Colorado State University, has made a superomniphobic tape that, when adhered to any surface, gives the surface liquid-repelling properties. This recent breakthrough has been published by ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces.

Superomniphobic surfaces are extremely repellent to all liquids, made possible by an air cushion that lies between a liquid and a solid surface. With more than 10 years of research in this area, Kota has made many breakthroughs in super-repellent coatings. This latest product is similar in flexibility to Scotch Tape, but has the additional functionality of being extremely liquid-repellant.

Kota, doctoral student Hamed Vahabi, and postdoctoral fellow Wei Wang, developed the unusual tape. Though simple at first glance, the technology's potential impact is extraordinary, the researchers say.

The concept of superomniphobic surfaces isn't new. Researchers have been studying superomniphobic coatings since about 2007, and currently superomniphobic coatings can be sprayed, deposited or etched onto any surface for a similar effect; however, it requires costly equipment, complex techniques, and must be done by an experienced professional.

A team of engineering researchers at the University of Michigan has developed a nanoscale coating that causes almost all liquids to bounce off surfaces treated with it. Creating a surface structure that is least 95 percent air, the new "superomniphobic" coating is claimed to repel the broadest range of liquids of any material in its class, opening up the possibility of super stain-resistant clothing, drag-reducing waterproof paints for ship hulls, breathable garments that provide protection from harmful chemicals, and touchscreens resistant to fingerprint smudges.

#Superomniphobic #hydrophobic #university of michigan #engineering #waterproof

Dr. Anish Tuteja has developed a coating that will repel just about any liquid.

You may have heard of oleophobic coatings (which reduce smudges on your touchscreen) or hydrophobic coatings (which repel water). Working with a team at the University of Michigan, he’s developed a new coating for material that will repel both Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluids of just about any kind. They’re calling it superomniphobic.

#superomniphobic #Dr. Anish Tuteja #oleophobic #hydrophobic