Condensation droplet sieve.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 36104319.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-022-32873-1 and PMC identifier 9474806.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Large droplets emerging during dropwise condensation impair surface properties such as anti-fogging/frosting ability and heat transfer efficiency. How to spontaneously detach massive randomly distributed droplets with controlled sizes has remained a challenge. Herein, we present a solution called condensation droplet sieve, through fabricating microscale thin-walled lattice structures coated with a superhydrophobic layer. Growing droplets were observed to jump off this surface once becoming slightly larger than the lattices. The maximum radius and residual volume of droplets were strictly confined to 16 μm and 3.2 nl/mm<sup>2</sup> respectively. We reveal that this droplet radius cut off is attributed to the large tolerance of coalescence mismatch for jumping and effective isolation of droplets between neighboring lattices. Our work brings forth a strategy for the design and fabrication of high-performance anti-dew materials.