'Rewritable' and 'liquid-specific' recognizable wettability pattern.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 38992010.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-024-49807-8 and PMC identifier 11239882.
- 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
Bio-inspired surfaces with wettability patterns display a unique ability for liquid manipulations. Sacrificing anti-wetting property for confining liquids irrespective of their surface tension (γ<sub>LV</sub>), remains a widely accepted basis for developing wettability patterns. In contrast, we introduce a 'liquid-specific' wettability pattern through selectively sacrificing the slippery property against only low γ<sub>LV</sub> (<30 mN m<sup>-1</sup>) liquids. This design includes a chemically reactive crystalline network of phase-transitioning polymer, which displays an effortless sliding of both low and high γ<sub>LV</sub> liquids. Upon its strategic chemical modification, droplets of low γ<sub>LV</sub> liquids fail to slide, rather spill arbitrarily on the tilted interface. In contrast, droplets of high γ<sub>LV</sub> liquids continue to slide on the same modified interface. Interestingly, the phase-transition driven rearrangement of crystalline network allows to revert the slippery property against low γ<sub>LV</sub> liquids. Here, we report a 'rewritable' and 'liquid-specific' wettability pattern for high throughput screening, separating, and remoulding non-aqueous liquids.