Complete Electrolytic Plastron Recovery in a Low Drag Superhydrophobic Surface.

ABSTRACT: We present a superhydrophobic surface capable of recovering the lubricious gas layer known as the "plastron" from a fully wetted state underwater. It is shown that full plastron recovery is possible without a second layer of structural hierarchy, which is prone to irreversible wetting transitions. This allows us to use a cheap, fast, and potentially scalable method to fabricate the surface from silicone and carbon black in a molding process. We demonstrate plastron recovery from the fully wetted state and immediate plastron recovery after pressure-induced wetting transitions. The wetting state can be measured remotely and quickly by measuring the capacitance. The slip length is measured as ∼135 μm, agreeing well with the theory given the geometry of the surface. The ability of the surface

SUBMITTER: Lloyd BP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7906494 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature