Preserving exposed hydrophilic bumps on multi-bioinspired slippery surface arrays unlocks high-efficiency fog collection and photocatalytic cleaning.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 41198668.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-025-65169-1 and PMC identifier 12592700.
- 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
The efficiency of fog collection technologies is inherently hindered by the long-standing dilemma of capture vs. transportation balance. Inspired by nature, we address this issue by preserving hydrophilic bumps on slippery liquid-infused porous surfaces (SLIPS) through an underwater infusion strategy, creating a super-slippery fog collector with multi-scale biomimetic structures. This surface combines features from beetle carapaces and pitcher plant surfaces, enabling rapid initial water capture on hydrophilic bumps and efficient droplet transport. As a result, we develop the most efficient fog-collecting surface reported to date, harvesting 5000-60000 mg/cm² per hour with fog flow rates ranging from 300-1500 mL/h. By macroscopically scaling and optimizing, we construct an integrated 3D fog collecting device capable of harvesting over 660 g of water in 500 minutes. Further integrating TiO<sub>2</sub> into the bumps imparts the ability for simultaneous water collection and purification without sacrificing collection efficiency. Our work reveals that resolving the capture-transport dichotomy is key to achieving high-efficiency fog water collection.