Long-lived superhydrophobic surfaces

Abstract

Prolonging the lifetime of superhydrophobic surfaces is required so that the materials can be used practically. Thus, great efforts have been made in designing surfaces that maintain micro- and nanoscaled hierarchical structures and low surface-energy property, which are necessary for superhydrophobicity, during use. It was demonstrated that improving surface mechanical strength to increase wear resistance helps maintain hierarchical roughness, retarding the loss of superhydrophobicity. Additionally, designing self-healing materials that can recover their structure and/or properties when damaged has been suggested and demonstrated to sustain the superhydrophobicity of surfaces. This review focuses on recent advances in developing mechanically durable, corrosion-resistant, self-healing, and easily repairable superhydrophobic surfaces, which will enable prolonged lifetime of superhydrophobicity for practical applications in the future.