The most waterproof surface in history has emerged

Science and Technology Daily, Beijing, October 24th (Reporter Zhang Mengran) - Researchers from Alto University in Finland have published a paper in the latest issue of Nature Chemistry, describing a new mechanism that allows water droplets to slide off the surface. This discovery challenges existing views on the friction between solid surfaces and water, and opens up a new way to study droplet slip properties at the molecular level

Science and Technology Daily, Beijing, October 24th (Reporter Zhang Mengran) - Researchers from Alto University in Finland have published a paper in the latest issue of Nature Chemistry, describing a new mechanism that allows water droplets to slide off the surface. This discovery challenges existing views on the friction between solid surfaces and water, and opens up a new way to study droplet slip properties at the molecular level. This new technology can be applied in multiple fields, including the pipeline, optics, automotive, and maritime industries.

Liquid like surfaces are a new type of anti droplet surface that has many technical advantages compared to traditional methods. They have highly mobile molecular layers, but are covalently bonded to the substrate, giving the solid surface a liquid like quality. The research team used a specially designed reactor to create a liquid like molecular layer on the silicon surface - self-assembled monolayer (SAM). By carefully adjusting the temperature and water content inside the reactor, researchers can fine tune the area of the silicon surface covered by a single layer. By integrating the reactor with an ellipsometer, researchers can observe the extraordinary growth details of SAM.

Research has shown that when SAM coverage is low or high, the surface becomes smoother. At low coverage, silicon surface is the most common component, while at high coverage, SAM is the most common component.

At low coverage, water forms a thin film on the surface, which is usually considered to increase friction. But research has found that water flows freely between SAM molecules with lower SAM coverage and slides off the surface. When the SAM coverage is high, water will stay at the top of the SAM and be equally prone to slipping. Only between these two states will water adhere to SAM and adhere to the surface.

This new method has proven to be very effective, as the research team has created the smoothest liquid surface in the world. This discovery has the potential to have an impact on any surface that requires anti droplet protection, covering hundreds of examples from daily life to industrial solutions.

Researchers have stated that pipeline heat transfer, deicing, and anti fog are all potential applications. It will also contribute to microfluidic technology, where small droplets need to move smoothly, helping to create self-cleaning surfaces.

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