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Due to the low adhesion observed at the interface between solid and liquid, superhydrophobic coatings hold significant promise for various applications, such as self-cleaning, anti-corrosion, anti-icing, and drag reduction. However, a notable challenge hindering their widespread adoption in these domains lies in their delicate durability. In this study, we propose a straightforward method for preparation. The fluorosilicone resin is initially discretized through a gradual introduction of nonsolvent into its solution, followed by thorough mixing and stirring with silica nanoparticles. The resulting mixture is then sprayed onto the substrate surface after drying, forming a self-similar, porous, and rough structure extending from top to bottom. This process yields a coating exhibiting excellent chemical and mechanical durability simultaneously. Using this approach, we achieved a superhydrophobic coating with a contact angle of 156° and a roll angle of 2.2°, with water droplet adhesion of only 10.8 ± 0.4 µN. Remarkably, the coating maintained excellent superhydrophobicity even after undergoing sandpaper abrasion (10 m), tape peeling (30 times), and prolonged water impact (60 min), showing its robust mechanical stability. Furthermore, following exposure to acid, alkali, and aqueous solutions (7 days), UV irradiation (10 days), and extreme temperature variations (–20 °C to 80 °C), the coatings retained their superhydrophobic properties and exhibited good chemical durability. This method offers a novel approach to enhance the durability and practicality of superhydrophobic coatings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aircraft structural materials corrosion will not only affect flight safety and need great maintenance work, but also cost much money and shorten the service period. A durable aircraft structural corrosion inhibiting compounds (CIC) coating was prepared by introducing dodecyl modified graphene oxide (GO-DDA). The lightweight GO-DDA lamellar can be uniformly dispersed in the CIC-35 matrix, which has consequently led to satisfying corrosion resistance (E: 0.072V, I: 1.18×10-7 A/cm2, and Rp: 6.87×106 Ω·cm2). At a filler content of 2.0 wt.%, the composite coating could maintain a high PE value even after a 30-day of accelerated UV-condensation aging. Given the facility in preparation as well as the superior corrosion resistance, this work will shed light on the further fabrication of composites coatings toward lightweight, high anti-corrosion performance and long-term effectiveness to meet the high requirement in practical applications such as aviation and shipping fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new type of superhydrophobic borneol-based polymeric coating has been prepared. The chemical composition of the polymer particles was analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, which showed that the polymer did not contain fluorine, which can effectively avoid the cytotoxic risk of fluorine. By dynamic light scattering, scanning electron microscopy, and static contact angle measurement, the contact angle of the prepared coating gradually increased with increasing diameter of the polymer particles, and a superhydrophobic coating surface was finally obtained. Interestingly, after dissolving the superhydrophobic sample with tetrahydrofuran and making it a normal hydrophobic sample, the antiadhesion performance for E. coli was greatly reduced, and it could not effectively prevent E. coli adhesion. In addition, a long-term antiadhesion study of bacteria was performed. The superhydrophobic borneol-based polymer coating showed long-term resistance to E. coli adhesion. Therefore, the excellent antibacterial properties and cell compatibility mean that this series of polymer materials has great potential in the field of biomedicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marine mussel-inspired polydopamine (PDA) coatings show excellent hydrophilicity and substrate-independent adhesion ability, but low stability, especially in a harsh environment such as strong acid or strong base, significantly restricts their applications. In this work, we prepare a novel superhydrophilic and underwater superoleophobic coating based on a modified PDA. Diglycidyl resorcinol ether (DGRE) polyethyleneimine (PEI) and iron ions were incorporated into PDA to strengthen the cross-linking and coating durability. By using three chemically inert hydrophobic membranes, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), poly(vinylidene fluoride), and polypropylene, as substrates, we showed that PDA/PEI/DGRE-coated membranes had a water contact angle (CA) of 0° and underwater oil CA above 157°, and their underwater oil SAs were <7°. The coating is durable against both physical and chemical damages including ultrasound and heat treatments, as well as acid/alkaline etching. After ultrasound treatment in water for 60 min, and heating treatment for 3 h, or acid/alkaline etching for 3 h, the coated PTFE membrane still showed water CAs of ∼0° in air and underwater oil CAs of ∼150°. The coated membranes can efficiently separate oil-in-water emulsions, even in strong acid and base environments. The water flux was above 1500 L m−2 h−1, and the oil rejection was above 99%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biomimetic superhydrophobic surfaces have become an increasingly hot topic in the area of aluminum alloy protection. However, it remains a significant challenge to construct superhydrophobic coatings with reliable durability and multifunction through simple and economical strategies. In this study, we designed a novel superhydrophobic coating with a water contact angle of ∼165.0° and a sliding angle of ∼2.4° on Al alloys by spraying hydrophobically modified natural palygorskite (SH-PAL) on the pre-cured epoxy resin (EP). The resulting superhydrophobic coating (EP@SH-PAL) exhibits good mechanical resistance, UV resistance, hot water repellency, chemical stability, thermal stability, and self-healing capabilities against plasma etching. Corrosion tests reveal that the protection efficiency of the EP@SH-PAL sample is up to 99.98 %, which remains at a high value of 90.30 % even after 20 days of immersion in 3.5 wt% NaCl. This improved corrosion resistance is attributed to the synergistic physical shielding from the SH-PAL topcoat and the EP primer. Meanwhile, molecular dynamics simulations of the mechanical durability and corrosion resistance of the EP@SH-PAL coating were performed to support the experimental results at the microscopic level. In addition, the above-prepared superhydrophobic coating also demonstrates excellent self-cleaning and antifouling characteristics. This research will provide a new method for fabricating low-cost, multifunctional, superhydrophobic anticorrosion coatings on aluminum alloys and other metal substrates. • A robust and multifunctional superhydrophobic coating was prepared by spraying SH-PAL on the pre-cured epoxy resin. • The EP@SH-PAL coating exhibits good durability against mechanical damage and chemical attack. • The EP@SH-PAL coating shows improved anti-corrosion performance in 3.5 wt% NaCl solution. • Theoretical calculations were performed to support experimental results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • This superhydrophobic coating also presents high infrared transmittance. • Great durability of superhydrophobicity is achieved. • It shows both self-cleaning and radiation cooling for diverse applications. Capturing thermal radiation using highly infrared (IR)-transparent materials have drawn great attention for diverse applications, such as IR guidance, IR detection, thermal radiation imaging, radiative cooling etc. However, the previously reported IR-transparent materials have the bottleneck of lacking superhydrophobicity, resulting in the degradation due to the dust, fog, rain, frost outdoors. Here, a durable IR-transparent superhydrophobic coating is reported via the spraying of polyester (PE) microspheres and fluorinated ZnS nanoparticles (NPs). Due to the high transmittance of ZnS and PE, the coating shows excellent IR transparency (around 90 %) in 8 ∼ 14 μm thermal IR band. Benefitting from the robustness of 3D connected PE network, the coating maintains superhydrophobicity after 180 cycles of linear wearing under 6 kPa. Moreover, the water jetting/atomizing/dust tests indicate that this coating effectively ensures the high accuracy of IR imaging lens under rainy/foggy/dusty environments. This coating on fabrics also achieves a remarkable radiative cooling effect for outdoor conditions to keep human body comfortable. With its facile preparation and versatile features, this coating has great potential on IR window, IR imaging and personal thermal management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Self-healing superhydrophobic coatings have attracted tremendous attention recently, although their practical applications are severely limited by hydrophobic instability and poor structure durability. In this study, a durable superhydrophobic coating was fabricated by a rapid micro/nano structural reconstruction strategy. Carbon nanofibers (CNF) with high aspect ratio were interspersed in fluorosilicone resin (FSR) to construct a uniform network structure. By combining with temperature-responsive carnauba wax (CW) and modified fluororubber (MFR), we obtained a superhydrophobic FSR/CNF/CW/MFR coating with a water contact angle (WCA) of 157 ± 1.2° and water sliding angle (WSA) of 4.5 ± 0.4°. Under the triple synergy of polymer segment migration of FSR, temperature-responsive phase transition of CW, and elastomer rebound repair of MFR, the damaged FSR/CNF/CW/MFR coating surface was rapidly reformed to a new hierarchical micro/nanostructure with short heat treatment (less than 120 s). As a result, for a flat surface, after 1000 abrasion cycles or falling ball impact, a rich micro/nano structure was rapidly reconstructed and superhydrophobic properties were restored. The reconstructed micro/nano multistage structure could effectively capture air, which led to the repaired area exhibiting a charming silver mirror effect and excellent self-cleaning performance. Therefore, this work is expected to provide new insight into the restoration of micro/nanostructures of durable superhydrophobic coatings. The self-healing mechanism of superhydrophobic coatings. [Display omitted] • A superhydrophobic coating with microstructure self-healing function was prepared. • The prepared coating after damaged could be rapidly repaired with heat treatment. • The prepared coating exhibits a charming silver mirror effect. • The prepared coating represents excellent wear resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current in-flight aircraft anti-icing and de-icing systems rely on active methods such as heat for ice mitigation, which tends to reduce the operating efficiency of the aircraft. Significant research is currently ongoing to develop anti-icing coatings for passive ice removal from aircraft surfaces. Although significant coating advances have been achieved in reducing ice adhesion and accretion, the majority of the developed prototypes cannot survive the harsh operating environments of an aircraft. Therefore, the goal of this work was to develop a coating with significant ice adhesion reduction and of sufficiently high durability to withstand typical aerospace operating conditions (with the exception of conditions at the wing leading edge areas). Low ice adhesion topcoats and clear coats have been developed based on qualified exterior aerospace coatings, and ice adhesion tests showed a decrease of up to 95% in the ice adhesion strength as compared to control coatings. These coatings are also as durable as current polyurethane aerospace topcoats. For example, the coatings did not sustain any damage for up to 30 min in a rain erosion test conducted at typical rain impact speeds to approximate real flight conditions. In addition, ice adhesion tests performed on degraded coatings (1,700 h of QUV Accelerated Weathering Test, UVB-313 nm lamp) showed that the ice release properties were retained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • A mechanically stable superhydrophobic coating of crosslinked PVB-HDI polymer was fabricated. • The crosslinking enhanced not only the coating-substrate binding but also the stability of the coating matrix. • The coating exhibited a self-healing ability in superhydrophobicity against O 2 plasma etching. Sustainable superhydrophobicity is of significance for practical application of superhydrophobic coatings. We fabricated a mechanically stable superhydrophobic coating with self-healing performance by spray-coating a composite suspension of poly(vinyl butyral)-hexamethylene diisocyanate and octadecylamine (PVB-HDI/ODA) on various substrates. In the as-obtained composite, PVB-HDI formed 3D self-crosslinked polymer networks which not only impart the coating with high mechanical stability but also provide strong bonding force between the coating and the substrate, and ODA formed pedal-like structures which roughened the coating surface with low surface energy. Consequently, the coating possessed superhydrophobicity with a water contact angle up to 163.9° and a sliding angle lower to 1.0°. Notably, the as-obtained coating sustained its water repellency even after being exposed to various mechanical and chemical treatments. Moreover, the coating exhibited a self-healing ability in superhydrophobicity against O 2 plasma etching. Such mechanical and chemical stabilities with self-healing ability are favourable to the superhydrophobic coating to prolong the lifespan for practical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Superamphiphobic materials exhibit broader applications and possess greater potential compared to their superhydrophobic counterparts. Therefore, it is crucial for superamphiphobic coatings to exhibit applications while maintaining a long service life. To address this challenge, the surface of natural clay kaolin particles was modified through the reaction of ethyl orthosilicate and 1 H, 1 H, 2 H, 2 H -perfluorodecyl triethoxysilane to form organic-inorganic cage fluorinated polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (fluoroPOS) modifiers. Subsequently, antimicrobial ZnO nanoparticles were prepared in situ using hydrothermal methods. Finally, a durable superamphiphobic coating was achieved by physical blending of a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) solution with the superamphiphobic powder. Experimental results demonstrate that the as-prepared ZnO/kaolin@fluoroPOS/PDMS coatings are resistant to water, milk, coffee, soy sauce, tea, sunflower oil, lubricant base oils, and other everyday liquids at contact angles greater than 150 degrees, demonstrating superior superamphiphobic and self-cleaning properties. Moreover, the coatings can withstand harsh external environments such as strong acid and alkali chemical corrosion, high temperature heating, photo-radiation aging, mechanical friction and wear, and show good durability. More importantly, the low surface energy fluoroPOS can spontaneously migrate from the interior of the coating to the surface when exposed to heat, thus restoring their impaired superamphiphobic properties. The coatings also have good antimicrobial adhesion due to the incorporation of ZnO nanoparticles. In addition, coatings can be fabricated on a variety of soft and hard substrate materials, such as cotton fabrics, sponges, aluminum sheets, and wood. Therefore, the repairable and durable superamphiphobic antifouling coatings constructed in this study are expected to find applications in many areas, such as building coatings, oil and gas pipelines, fluid drag reduction, and biological anti-corrosion. [Display omitted] • The ZnO/Kaolin@fluoroPOS/PDMS coating was fabricated by surface modification. • The coating is superamphiphobic to water and liquids with low surface tension. • The coating is resistant to acid/alkali, heat, light aging, and mechanical wear. • Due to the thermal migration of fluoride, the superamphiphobic feature is repairable. • Diverse substrate adaptivity and antibacterial allow coatings to be used for antifouling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, a superhydrophobic surface coating with highly antireflective properties that maintains a high durability and light transmittance was synthesized for possible use on the glass covers of solar cells. The coating was made in two steps to form a dual-scale structure. First, a 3D crosslinked network of nanopores was formed from the volatilization of pore-forming agents during calcination. Second, silica nanoparticles in a sol were attached to the nanopore structure, thereby reducing the size of the pore structures and forming a dual-scale structure. The refractive index of the coating was reduced to 1.3471, making the surface antireflective. The coated surface possessed an average transmittance as high as 97%, in contrast to the transmittance of 90% of the bare glass substrate. Meanwhile, the surface was superhydrophobic, showing a static water contact angle of 157.9° and a contact angle hysteresis of 1.2°. As a result, the as-prepared superhydrophobic coating showed outstanding self-cleaning properties. Moreover, the surface showed remarkable stability against strong acid, strong alkali and the impact of water drops. Further, the surface passed a 4H pencil hardness test. This facile and low-cost production method is believed to offer an effective solution for industrial applications in solar cells and windows, among others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surfaces showing desirable under-liquid superlyophobicity have attracted great interests due to their high potential applications, especially in the liquid separation. Nevertheless, it still remains a challenge to put forward a universal strategy to fabricate robust under-liquid superlyophobic surfaces with self-healing function. Herein, a highly durable and self-healing under-liquid superlyophobic coating is developed that can be applied onto various substrates (e.g., cotton, polyester, filter paper, wool, hemp, sponge, lyocell, etc.) via a two-step coating process, through depositing silica nanoparticles partially grafted by octadecylamine followed by crosslinking of polyurethane macromolecules containing polysorbate20. The obtained substrates show superamphiphilic in air, under-water superoleophobic and under-oil superhydrophobic properties. High-efficiency separations of polar-nonpolar liquids, e.g., water-heavy oil, water-light oil, immiscible organic liquid mixtures, can be achieved when the coated fabric was used as the separation membrane. Moreover, such under-liquid superlyophobic coating demonstrates excellent durability against repeated washing, long time UV irradiation, organic solvent attack, high temperature and plasma treatment. Even the coating surface is damaged chemically or physically, its original superwetting property can be recovered by a short time of heating treatment. This work could provide a guidance for developing durable under-liquid superlyophobic materials with self-healing ability for diversified applications, such as liquid separation, micro-fluid manipulation, anti-adhesive surfaces. [Display omitted] • A surface showing superamphiphilic in air and superlyophobic in liquid state is developed via adip-coating method. • The fabricated coating is durable against many harsh treatments and demonstrates self-healing capability. • The coating can realize high-efficiency separation of immiscible polar-nonpolar liquids. • This durable and self-healing under-liquid superlyophobic coating can be applied on various substrates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors report durable and recyclable nanocomposite superhydrophobic coatings on two different substrates of fabric and mesh as prepared by titania nanoparticles and polydimethysiloxane (PDMS). The felted wool fabric and the steel mesh are initially coated with a thin layer of PDMS, which is followed by the deposition of nanocomposite coating of titania nanoparticles embedded in PDMS. The dual surface modification of two kinds of substrates generates highly hydrophobic surface character, which is retained after durability performance as measured in ultrasonication, sand, and emery paper abrasion tests. Oil–water separation experiments are performed using water mixtures with four oils, that is, n‐hexane, toluene, kerosene, and diesel to ensure the industrial applications of prepared composite materials. Moreover, nanocomposite coatings are tested for several cycles of oil–water separation in harsh conditions such as hot water, sodium chloride, and hydrochloric acid. The adopted approach improves the separation performance by inducing durability of the prepared nanocomposite coatings along with introducing recyclable character. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Poor robustness, high cost and complicated preparation are the main barriers to the large-scale industrial application of amphiphobic coatings. A facile and low-cost method to fabricate durable amphiphobic coatings is reported in this work. The coatings were composed of top and bottom paints. The top paint was prepared by the F-Si@PMAA hybrid nanocomposites dispersion. The hybrid nanocomposites with dual structure were prepared via the co-condensation reaction of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) and 1H,1H,2H,2H-Perfluorodecyl triethoxysilane (HDFTES) on the surface of the presynthesized PMAA nanoparticles in ethanol dispersion. The bottom one was a type of inexpensive car refinishing paint. The resulting coatings could be sprayed onto different substrates. All the coated substrates exhibited good amphiphobicity with superhydrophobicity with the water contact angle greater than 150°, water roll-off angle less than 4°, and high oleophobicity with the oil contact angle greater than 130°. Moreover, all of the prepared coatings exhibited great robustness after water jetting, sand abrasion, and knife scratching. This method can be an effective strategy for fabricating amphiphobic surfaces for practical industrial applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing coating systems for preparing superamphiphobic surfaces are predominantly confined to small-scale uses due to the heavy use of organic solvents. Waterborne coating treatment is highly desirable for the high safety, low cost, and nonenvironmental impact, but it remains difficult to develop due to the problems in forming durable, homogeneous coating from an aqueous dispersion of amphiphobic substances. In this study, the authors have proved that lyophobic nanoparticles, fluorinated alkyl silane (FAS), and fluorocarbon surfactant can form a stable dispersion in water, suitable for preparing durable superamphiphobic surfaces on various solid substrates. A series of substrates including fabrics, sponge, wood, glass, and metal, after being coated with this ternary coating system, shows superamphiphobicity with low contact angle hysteresis. The coating is durable enough against physical abrasion, repeated washing, boiling in water, and strong acid/base attacks. Benefiting from FAS, the coating also has a self-healing ability against both physical and chemical damages. The unexpected stability of the ternary dispersion is a result of the synergistic interaction of the three ingredients. Results from this study may promote the wide development of safe and cost-efficient superamphiphobic techniques for diverse applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, constructing excellent superhydrophobic coatings has received increasing attention, and various superhydrophobic coatings have been developed. However, their mechanical and environmental durability still face challenges. In this paper, a kind of durable and self-healing superhydrophobic coating that was composed of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), Polyfluo-150Wax (PFW), and palygorskite (PAL) was fabricated using a simple and low-cost method. Modified palygorskite (MPAL) was obtained firstly to construct the necessary micro/nano structure of superhydrophobic coatings. PDMS made the coatings have low surface energy and good durability. Moreover, the superhydrophobicity of the as-prepared coatings suffered no change after they were exposed to UV light for dozens of hours. Although the coatings might lose superhydrophobicity in some extreme corrosive liquids, their character was rapidly restored after a thermal treatment because of the presence of PFW. Furthermore, the coating had an incredible structural self-healing ability. The scratches on the surface of the coating could be cured at high temperatures. Such powerful functions make the as-proposed superhydrophobic coating have promising applications in industry and daily life. Also, this work may promote the high-value use of MAPL. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Superhydrophobic materials have gathered great attention due to its great commercial potential. However, the low stability of coatings is a major challenge for applications. Here, a superhydrophobic coating with mechanical stability and corrosion resistance was obtained by using spray-coating method. We combine micro-scale roughness with low surface energy (18.5 mN m −1 ) to create a durable hierarchical structure with critical transition pressure of 570 Pa. Interestingly, the as-prepared superhydrophobic coating exhibited good mechanical stability and corrosion resistance. Importantly, various substrates could be used for spray coating. When applied superhydrophobic coating on copper surface, corrosion resistance property was achieved. The present study provides a simple method to produce multifunctional surface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A mechanically durable and scalable superhydrophobic coating was fabricated by combining the advantages of both bottom-up and top-down approaches into a one-pot, one-step application method. This is achieved by spray coating a solution consisting of silica nanoparticles, which are embedded within epoxy resin, onto a heated substrate to rapidly drive both solvent evaporation and curing simultaneously. By maintaining a high substrate temperature, the arrival of spray-delivered micrometer-sized droplets are rapidly cured onto the substrate to form surface microroughness, while simultaneously, rapid solvent evaporation within each droplet results in the formation of a nanoporous structure. SEM, dual-beam FIB, and cross-sectional TEM/EDAX elemental mapping were used to confirm both the chemistry and the requisite micro- and nano-porosity within the coating structure requisite for superhydrophobicity. The resultant coatings exhibit contact angles greater than 150° (153.8° ± 0.8°) and roll-off angles of 8° ± 2°, with a coating hardness of 6H on the pencil hardness scale, and a rating of 5 on an ASTM crosshatch test. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of novel, durable, low-surface energy coatings with antifouling (ice, insects, biofouling etc.) and low friction properties is believed to be a promising direction for research with benefit to the transportation, construction and power generation sectors. Conventional coatings and surface treatments have not been successful in this area because of a lack of long-term durability and limited repellency of environmental fouling agents. New nanostructured coatings, which can be deposited from the liquid state, offer a potential solution that can be easily industrially adopted. However, there is a lack of standardization regarding their characterization and performance evaluation. The strategy selected by TWI and Brunel University to link the properties and structure of high-performance coatings from the nano to macro scale is described and is illustrated by the presentation of some provisional results. Functionalised nanostructured silica species have been used to reinforce an acrylate matrix leading to retention of the hydrophobicity even after aggressive abrasive wear. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] A durable superhydrophobic coating was fabricated using nylon micro-rods. [•] Nylon micro-rods were encased in a methyltrimethoxysilane shell. [•] The nylon micro-rods were precipitated from a miniemulsion. [•] The processing temperature does not exceed 70°C in any step during fabrication. [•] The resultant coating possesses a pencil hardness of 2H. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A promising novel solution-chemical method to fabricate spectrally selective solar absorber coatings has been developed. The objective was to create highly efficient, flexible, inexpensive and durable selective absorbers for solar thermal applications using simple techniques. The selectively absorbing film consists of a composite with nickel nano-particles embedded in a dielectric matrix of alumina. The anti-reflection (AR) material should have the following properties: the proper refractive index, low thermal emittance, dense, flexible and long-term stable. The AR materials tested were silica, alumina and mixtures of silica–titania. The refractive indexes of the above-mentioned materials range from 1.4 (silica) to about 2.1 (50/50molar ratio silica/titania mixture). Besides increasing the normal solar absorptance, α sol, it is equally important that the AR layer is long-term stable in order to create a successful solar selective coating. The anti-reflection coatings were synthesized using different solution-chemical methods and deposited on the absorbing layer by spin coating. Prepared samples were subjected to an accelerated lifetime test. In the test procedure the temperature of the environment was set to 40°C and the relative humidity to 95%. Samples made with alumina as anti-reflection coatings failed the aging test. All other materials, silica and silica–titania mixtures proved to be very resilient. Samples that were coated with these anti-reflection materials showed no visible degradation of the sample surface even after 600h of testing. Single-layer absorbers without an AR layer typically attain a normal solar absorptance of 0.80 and a normal thermal emittance of 0.03. Of the samples made with durable films a 70/30 silica/titania mixture showed the greatest increase of the α sol value, 0.91, while the thermal emittance remained unaltered. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• The prepared CNTs@SiO 2 particles can enhance lateral film-forming properties of the coating. • MPS as a bridge can improve the longitudinal bonding between the coating and Al plate surface. • The prepared PUA/MPS/CNTs@SiO 2 superhydrophobic coating possessed ultrahigh adhesion ability. • The PUA/MPS/CNTs@SiO 2 coating can maintain superhydrophobicity during the abrasion test. UV-curing superhydrophobic coatings, which have high efficiency and energy saving characteristics, have wide application prospects, but still face some challenges, such as limited mechanical stability and low adhesive force. Herein, a durable UV-curing superhydrophobic polyurethane acrylic (PUA) coating was prepared via an interfacial strengthening strategy. Nano-SiO 2 grown in situ on the surfaces of carboxylated carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were used to strengthen the interfacial interaction between the particles and reduce the barrier effect of the nanoparticles on the resin monomers. The C C bonds on the CNTs@SiO 2 particle surface, which were grafted with 3-methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane (MPS), improved the lateral film-forming properties of the coating as the PUA monomers polymerized with the unsaturated C C bonds. Additionally, the longitudinal bonding between the coating and metal surface was enhanced by the addition of MPS, which acted as a bridge that connected the C C bonds of PUA to the hydroxyl group on the metal surface. Because of the aforementioned interfacial strengthening in both the vertical and horizontal directions, the superhydrophobic PUA/MPS/CNTs@SiO 2 coating exhibited excellent adhesion (0 grade) and maintained superhydrophobicity even after 1500 cycles of abrasion. In addition, the prepared superhydrophobic coating also possessed good UV-resistance, self-cleaning properties, and could withstand impact by water droplets (4.4 m/s) and sand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of halogen-based materials has been regulated since toxic substances are released during combustion. In this study, polyurethane foam was coated with cationic starch (CS) and montmorillonite (MMT) nano-clay using a spray-assisted layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly to develop an eco-friendly, high-performance flame-retardant coating agent. The thickness of the CS/MMT coating layer was confirmed to have increased uniformly as the layers were stacked. Likewise, a cone calorimetry test confirmed that the heat release rate and total heat release of the coated foam decreased by about 1/2, and a flame test showed improved fire retardancy based on the analysis of combustion speed, flame size, and residues of the LbL-coated foam. More importantly, an additional cone calorimeter test was performed after conducting more than 1000 compressions to assess the durability of the flame-retardant coating layer when applied in real life, confirming the durability of the LbL coating by the lasting flame retardancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inspired by lotus leaves in nature, superhydrophobic surfaces have attracted extensive attention in many fields. However, their complex preparation process, poor durability and high cost seriously restrict their large-scale application in industrial production. Based on the good flexibility and durability of carbon nanofibers, several simple modifier-free one-step approaches were adopted to fabricate a durable CNF/PVDF/PDMS conductive superhydrophobic coating. The fabricated coating not only possesses good superhydrophobicity to many kinds of liquids, but also has excellent self-cleaning and anti-fouling properties. In addition, the superhydrophobicity of the obtained multifunctional coating is stable even after harsh bending fatigue deformation, long immersion times and high-temperature treatment. Due to its strong adhesion and excellent conductivity, the CNF/PVDF/PDMS coating displays reliable mechanical stability and superior sensitivity. These distinct features make the obtained conductive superhydrophobic coating a good candidate for multifunctional smart sensors, with great application prospects in gesture detectors, waterproof wearable electronics and health monitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• An epoxy-silica nanocomposite was developed to fabricate durable superhydrophobic coatings. • The fabrication technique is facile, economic, and scalable. • An amino-functionalized polysiloxane was used to modify the epoxy. • The coating is suitable for different substrate materials such as metals, glass, wood, or fabrics. • The coating demonstrated exceptional durability against peeling, abrasion, corrosion, and high temperature tests. The extensive research and interest in superhydrophobic surfaces have not yet resulted in their widespread utilization. Limitations include high cost, complex fabrication techniques, and poor durability. Herein, we report a facile, economic, and scalable spray-coating fabrication technique that utilizes an epoxy-silica nanocomposite to create robust and durable superhydrophobic coatings. To overcome its inherent high surface energy, the epoxy was modified using an amino-functionalized polysiloxane. The newly developed nanocomposite coating demonstrated excellent water repellency with contact angles of ~165° and sliding angles of ~3° for different substrate materials such as metals, wood, glass, and textile. Our results revealed that a nanocomposite coating with a silica concentration of ~28 wt% provides an optimum balance between superhydrophobicity and durability. We also investigated the effect of solvent volatility on the hierarchical structure and superhydrophobicity of the coated samples, which is rarely considered in the literature. It was found that a spray emulsion with lower solvent volatility results in an enhanced surface microstructure that improves water repellency. Moreover, the coated samples demonstrated excellent robustness and durability against peeling, abrasion, corrosion (pH 1 to 13), and high temperature (up to 150 °C) environments exposure tests. The outcome of our efforts confirms that the epoxy modification process leads to enhanced superhydrophobicity without compromising the robustness and durability of the coating. This remarkable performance offers a great potential for large-scale production of superhydrophobic surfaces operating in harsh working conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Multifunctional cotton textiles were simply fabricated via dip-dry coating method. • The coated textiles had magnificent superhydrophobicity with excellent durability. • The coated superhydrophobic textiles did not hold any fluoro-type toxic reagents. • This superhydrophobic textile also showed excellent oil–water separation ability. Superhydrophobic surfaces with long-lasting stability through simple fabrication procedures have attracted considerable attention. The application of existing superhydrophobic surfaces is limited, considering the use of toxic ingredients and their poor longevity. Herein, we report the novel fabrication of durable, fluorine-free, and self-healing superhydrophobic cotton textiles by utilising boric acid (H 3 BO 3) as a cross-linker to silica nanoparticles and poly (vinyl alcohol) followed by polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) modification through a simple dip-dry coating technique. Boric acid possessed a noticeable micro/nanoporous structure with silica and poly (vinyl alcohol) via cross-linking on the surface, which showed excellent superhydrophobicity, and PDMS modification on the textile surface created a lower surface energy than unmodified textile. The fabricated surface exhibited a maximum water-contact angle of 156.84°±1.5° with a small rolling angle of 1.8°±0.3°, presenting outstanding superhydrophobicity for cotton textiles. The modified cotton textile surface had excellent durability against mechanical and chemical disturbances. The experimental findings indicated that the fabricated textile had adequate mechanical strength that could withstand sandpaper abrasion for 120 cycles, tape-peeling repetition 60 times, knife scratching for 20 cycles and washing by surfactant solutions for 80 cycles. Additionally, the modified textiles exhibited oil–water separation and self-healing abilities, therefore showing multifunctional properties that have potential in a wide range of cotton textile surface treatments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hydrophobic silica nanoparticles have been widely used in the fabrication of superhydrophobic surfaces. In this study, we prepared superhydrophobic coating using hydrophobic SiO2 nanoparticles by facile dip coat technique. After that, a layer of cyanoacrylate adhesive was applied to improve the durability of the superhydrophobic coating. Finally, the coating was annealed at 200 °C for 10 min. A water drop on prepared superhydrophobic coating showed contact angle ≈173° and sliding angle ≈1°. The prepared superhydrophobic coating revealed self‐cleaning behavior for more than 2 years. This approach can be useful for fabrication of superhydrophobic coating for practical industrial application including solar panel, windows glass, vehicle glass and fabrics, and so on. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we develop a facial one-step approach to prepare durable super-hydrophobic coatings on glass surfaces. The hydrophobic characteristics, corrosive liquid resistance, and mechanical durability of the super-hydrophobic surface are presented. The as-prepared super-hydrophobic surface exhibits a water contact angle (WCA) of 157.2° and contact angle hysteresis of 2.3°. Mico/nano hierarchical structures and elements of silicon and fluorine is observed on super-hydrophobic surfaces. The adhesion strength and hardness of the surface are determined to be 1st level and 4H, respectively. The coating is, thus, capable of maintaining super-hydrophobic state after sand grinding with a load of 200 g and wear distances of 700 mm. The rough surface retained after severe mechanical abrasion observed by atomic force microscope (AFM) microscopically proves the durable origin of the super-hydrophobic coating. Results demonstrate the feasibility of production of the durable super-hydrophobic coating via enhancing its adhesion strength and surface hardness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]