https://doi.org/10.1140/epje/i2013-13059-2
Regular Article
Tuning the wettability of an aluminum surface via a chemically deposited fractal dendrite structure
1
Key Laboratory of Space Applied Physics and Chemistry of Ministry of Education, School of Science, Northwestern Polytechnical University, 710129, Xi’an, China
2
School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Edinburgh, Mayfield Road, EH9 3JZ, Edinburgh, UK
* e-mail: dyzang@nwpu.edu.cn
Received:
6
November
2012
Accepted:
23
May
2013
Published online:
20
June
2013
We have developed a straightforward method to tune the wettability of an aluminum substrate within a contact angle (CA) range from 2° to 170° by chemical deposition in CuCl2 solution and fluoroalkylsilane (FAS) modification. The CA of the as-deposited surface decreases with deposition time due to the growth of fractal copper dendrites, which enhance the surface roughness significantly. After subsequent modification with FAS, a superhydrophobic surface with CA 170° and sliding angle less than 5° has been obtained. With the increase of CA, the maximum spreading of water droplets is reduced. A bouncing behavior is observed for droplets impinging on the superhydrophobic substrate, suggesting its potential application as a self-cleaning surface.
Key words: Soft Matter: Interfacial Phenomena and Nanostructured Surfaces
© EDP Sciences, SIF, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, 2013