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Photothermal conversion material that generates thermal energy from sunlight is expected to be a promising technology for harvesting and conversion of clean solar energy. However, its photothermal conversion will be affected due to the surface contamination by dirt in outdoor applications, which greatly reduces the solar energy absorption. Herein, a superhydrophobic photothermal conversion fabric was fabricated through layer-by-lay self-assembly of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on the surface of fibers, and followed by post-treatment with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). The CNTs not only impart to the fabric high photothermal conversion capability, but also construct roughening structures on the fiber surface. Consequently, the as-prepared fabric could be rapidly heated to 89.8 °C under one sun (1 kW/m2) irradiation, and showed excellent superhydrophobicity with contact angle 165° ± 0.9° and rolling angle 0.6° ± 0.2°. Meanwhile, the fabric possessed excellent stability to organic solvent, acid/alkali solutions, and UV irradiation. Importantly, the superhydrophobic self-cleaning property prevents the photothermal coating from contamination to guarantee the durability of the photothermal conversion efficiency.

Functional textiles are ideal substrates for wearable electronics. Herein, superhydrophobic, flame-retardant and conductive cotton fabrics were fabricated by sequential assembly of poly(ethylenimine), ammonium polyphosphate and carbon nanotubes, followed by post-treatment with poly(dimethylsiloxane). The resulting fabrics possessed excellent superhydrophobic stability toward acid, alkali, organic solvent, UV irradiation, abrasion and long-time laundering. Meanwhile, when suffering to fire, the coated fabric could generate an efficient char layer and extinguish the fire to protect the cotton fiber from forming flame. Furthermore, this conductive cotton fabric exhibited stable sensing ability in contact with water droplets, showing wide potential application in wearable electronics as multifunctional smart textiles.

Stretchable superhydrophobic film was fabricated by casting silicone rubber polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) on a SiO2 nanoparticle-decorated template and subsequent stripping. PDMS endowed the resulting surface with excellent flexibility and stretchability. The use of nanoparticles contributed to the sustained roughening of the surface, even under large strain, offering mechanically durable superhydrophobicity. The resulting composite film could maintain its superhydrophobicity (water contact angle ≈ 161° and sliding angle close to 0°) under a large stretching strain of up to 100% and could withstand 500 stretching–releasing cycles without losing its superhydrophobic properties. Furthermore, the obtained film was resistant to long term exposure to different pH solutions and ultraviolet light irradiation, as well as to manual destruction, sandpaper abrasion, and weight pressing.

By strong oxygen plasma treatment on monolayer MoS2, we observe the disappearance of the Raman modes of MoS2. We propose the hypothesis that the state of MoS2 translates from crystal to amorphous after strong oxygen plasma treatment. The evidences of no MoO3 formation shown by Raman spectra and the appearance of the Mo6+ peak and decreased O concentration shown by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy support our hypothesis. The amorphization of monolayer MoS2 is further confirmed by the quenching of photoluminescence (PL) and the disappearance of two absorption peaks related to A, B exciton which demonstrates the disordered bandgap. Finally, we found that the amorphous MoS2 can improve the absorption fraction at the visible light (500~ 750 nm) which is potential for future visible light photocatalysis. Published version

Robustness of superhydrophobic materials has been gradually taken into consideration for practical applications; however, little attention has been paid to the impact resistance of the superhydrophobicity of the materials. The present study demonstrated a new route for improving the mechanical durability, especially the impact resistance, of the superhydrophobic materials. First, poly(styrene-co-butadiene)/poly(ethylene-vinyl acetate) (SBR/EVA) composite monoliths with microscale cellular structures were manufactured by vulcanization-foaming processes. Then the composite monoliths were treated with sandpaper to create nanostructures above the revealed micropores after removing the uppermost skin, forming micro/nanotextured surfaces and giving improvements in superhydrophobicity. Due to the elastomeric nature of SBR and EVA, the superhydrophobicity of the monoliths can be maintained even while the material is mechanically impacted or compressed, and wearing helps improvement or recovery of the superhydrophobicity because of the self-similarity of the cellular structure inside the monoliths. Additionally, the obtained superhydrophobic materials are resistant to acidic, alkali, and salt liquors as well as organic solvents and have easy healing capacity of superhydrophobicity with a simple sanding treatment when destroyed by exposure to oxygen plasma.

Superhydrophobic coatings were fabricated with edible candelilla wax and rice bran wax via one step spraying a wax-in-ethanol hot solution on polypropylene (PP) substrates for food containers. Beautiful “flower-like” surface microstructures were formed only by self-roughening of the coating without adding any nanomaterials or any lithography step, making the coatings display great superhydrophobicity for a variety of non-Newtonian viscous liquids with contact angles higher than 150° and sliding angles close to 0°. The as-coated PP can keep excellent superhydrophobic properties after impact from hot aqueous solution (about 70 °C) or 1200 repeated bends, exhibiting good heat resistance and superior flexibility. Importantly, the excellent durability could make it super-repel non-Newtonian fluids after various types of damage (including finger touching and multiple abrasion cycles with sandpaper). This approach can be applied to the inner surface of all kinds of food packaging to reduce liquid food residue.

Lateral-flow analysis (LFA) is a convenient, low-cost, and rapid detection method, which has been widely used for screening of diseases. However, sensitivity enhancement in LFA is still a focus in this field and remains challenging. Herein, we propose an electrospinning coating method to modify the conventional nitrocellulose (NC) membrane and optimize the liquid flow rate for enhancing the sensitivity of the NC based LFA strips in the detection of human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) and luteinizing hormone (LH). It can be seen that coating the NC membrane with nitrocellulose fibers could obtain a NC based strip with HCG and LH detection limits of 0.22 and 0.36 mIU mL−1 respectively, and a quantitative linear range of 0.5–500 mIU mL−1. The results show that electrospinning is effective in modifying conventional NC membranes for LFA applications.

The main goal of this work is to develop an economical, portable, disposable, and reliable point of care paper biosensor based on visualization, which can be used to detect viruses, bacteria, and proteins. However, the sensitivity of immunochromatography test (ICT) strips based on nitrocellulose to target detection has always been a problem. Here, we use an electrospun nitrocellulose (ENC) fiber membrane instead of traditional nitrocellulose fiber membrane to construct ICT strips for early pregnancy detection. By proper selection of the diameter of the ENC fiber to adjust the pore size, porosity, and morphology of the membrane, ICT strips with low flow rate and high protein loading were obtained. Based on these properties, a convenient and sensitive method for the colorimetric determination of human chorionic gonadotropin was developed. Under the optimal conditions, the detection limit of ICT based on ENC membrane is 10 mIU mL−1 (S/N = 3), the linear detection range is 5–1000 mIU mL−1, and the linear relationship is Y = 0.0434 X − 0.0136 (R2 = 0.9802). In addition, the test strip has good specificity and stability, and will not produce false-positive results.

Superhydrophobic fabrics were successfully prepared by modification of fibers with polymers containing polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS). The modification was conducted by chemical vapor deposition with mercapto silanes followed by click coupling with pentaerythritol tetrakis(3-mercaptopropionate) and octavinyl-POSS to form POSS-based polymers on the cotton fibers. The POSS-based polymers onto the fabric surfaces both increased the surface roughness and lowered the surface energy of the fabrics. The as-prepared superhydrophobic fabrics have excellent superhydrophobicity stability toward acid, base, salt, acetone, and N,N-dimethylformamide. In addition, the fabrics maintained superhydrophobicity under long time exposure to UV irradiation, and have better antifouling properties.

Superhydrophobic poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) fabrics were firstly fabricated by one-pot in situ Stober reaction of tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) and dodecyltrimethoxysilane (DTMS), in which the as-formed silica particles roughened the fiber surfaces and the hydrolyzed dodecyltrimethoxysilane hydrophobized the fabrics. Then the superhydrophobic fabrics were turned superamphiphobic after modification with perfluorodecyltrichlorosilane (PFDTS), with water and oil contact angles higher than 150°. The synergistic hydrophobization of DTMS, PFDTS and PDMS made the roughened fabrics easy to be superamphiphobic using very low concentration of PFDTS. Meanwhile, the as-obtained superamphiphobic fabric showed excellent chemical robustness even after exposure to different chemicals, such as acid, base, and salt. Importantly, the fabrics were durable to 100 cycles of laundries, 1000 cycles of mechanical abrasion as well as long time exposure to UV irradiation without apparently changing the amphiphobicity. Also, the surface of the superamphiphobic fabrics showed excellent blood stain resistance properties.

Stretchable superhydrophobic film was fabricated by casting silicone rubber polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) on a SiO

Passive daytime radiative cooling (PDRC) offers a sustainable way without additional energy input to cool objects by simultaneously reflecting sunlight and radiating heat through mid-infrared wavelengths. However, PDRC materials are easily contaminated by rain water, settled dust, microorganisms etc., which cause degradation in the cooling performance. Herein, we developed a porous composite film of ethylene-propylene-diene copolymer (EPDM) and hydrophobic SiO2 particles integrating superhydrophobic self-cleaning and radiative cooling. The film consists of EPDM micropores filled with numerous SiO2 agglomerations, resulting in solar reflectance of 96% with an average emissivity of 95% and superhydrophobicity with water contact angle of 162° and sliding angle of 1.2°. The film achieved a sub-ambient temperature drop of 12 °C in sealed air and 7 °C in open air under direct sunlight. Importantly, the superhydrophobic self-cleaning effect of the film prevents its surface from outdoor contamination or wetting, favoring long lasting cooling efficiency, which is promising in applications for cooling electronic devices, vehicles, building materials, etc.

Flexible sensing materials have become scientific hotspot in smart sensors. For outdoor uses, wearable electronic sensors must meet the challenges from water, sweat, or other liquids. Herein, a simple strategy was described to fabricate nanocomposite film of thermoplastic elastomer and carbon nanotubes (TPE/CNTs) at air/water interface for wearable electronics with liquid repelling property. Firstly, mixture suspension of TPE and CNTs was pumped into water and kept still to form a TPE/CNTs sheet at the water surface. Then the sheet was stabilized by spraying with N-hexane and transferred out of the air/water interface to obtain a free-standing TPE/CNTs film. The resultant film is conductive with a resistance of 15KΩ and superhydrophobic with a CA of 160°. When applied as a sensor, it shows excellent performance with superior sensitivity (The gauge factor is about 1), fast response time (100–150 ms), stable response over 1000 stretching-relaxing cycles, and wide sensing ranges (stretching: over 76%). Importantly, it can be used in wet conditions, making it capable to be wearable electronic devices for fast response, long-term and reliable human behavior monitoring.

A major challenge remains in preparing superhydrophobic textiles that withstand the impact of high hydrostatic pressure. In this report, textiles were coated with PDMS/SiO 2 mixture to obtain water pressure resistant property. Then the coated textiles were further hydrophobized with tetraethoxysilane and cetyltrimethoxysilane by an in situ Stober reaction. The as-obtained textiles exhibited a static water contact angle of 162.5° with a sliding angle

Surfaces with sustainable superhydrophobicity have drawn much attention in recent years for improved durability in practical applications. In this study, hollow mesoporous silica nanoparticles (HMSNs) were prepared and used as reservoirs to load dodecyltrimethoxysilane (DDTMS). Then superhydrophobic surfaces were fabricated by spray coating HMSNs with DDTMS as particle stacking structure and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) as hydrophobic interconnection. The mechanical durability of the obtained superhydrophobic surface was evaluated by a cyclic sand abrasion. It was found that once the surface was mechanically damaged, new roughening structures made of the cavity of the HMSNs would expose and maintain suitable hierarchical roughness surrounded by PDMS and DDTMS, favoring sustainable superhydrphobicity of the coating. The surfaces could sustain superhydrophobicity even after 1000 cycles of sand abrasion. This facile strategy may pave the way to the development of robust superhydrophobic surfaces in practical applications.

Flexible and wearable sensors are of extreme importance for various practical applications in complex environments, such as electronic skin, body motion detection, etc. However, preparation of cost-effective and superhydrophobic wearable sensors with excellent flexibility, anti-corrosion, outstanding sensitivity and environmental adaptability remains challenging. Herein, a superhydrophobic flexible film is fabricated by spray-coating thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) solution on the upside of a multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNTs) sheet formed at the air/water interface, followed by treating the downside of MWCNTs sheet with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) pumped into the water. In the process, the covering of TPE on the MWCNTs made the sheet shrunk and increased the density of the conductive network. PDMS coating enhanced superhydrophobicity of the film, and binding fastness of the MWCNTs. The obtained sandwich-like TPE/MWCNTs/PDMS film had superior conductive sensitivity, large strain range (80%), fast and stable response time (60–80 ms) with great stability over 1000 stretching-relaxing cycles. Benefiting from the favorable superhydrophobic property, the fabricated film was capable of being put into liquid environment for quantifying the resistance under humid environments including moisture, acid, basic and salt conditions. It can be effectively used to measure wrist pulse and monitor various movements associated with different human body joints, such as finger, wrist, elbow. Moreover, the sensing film was able to capture the continuous signals in diverse atmosphere such as the area change of film, and the real-time stress response of drop impact. This study affords an innovative and promising track for multifunctional wearable sensors with wide applications in a harsh environment.

Mechanically durable superhydrophobic surfaces on cotton fabrics were fabricated by binding polystyrene nanoparticles onto fibers with aluminum phosphate (AP) followed by coating with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) as low surface energy substance. Decoration of nanoparticles roughened the fabric surface and coating with AP made stable the roughening structures. The as-prepared fabric surfaces not only showed excellent stability to acid, alkali, salt, organic solvent and UV irradiation, but also could maintain their superhydrophobicity after abrasion of 2000 or laundering of 35 cycles. The combination of inorganic adhesives AP and organic PDMS greatly enhanced the mechanical stability of the superhydrophobicty of the cotton substrate. Meanwhile, the obtained superhydrophobic fabrics showed excellent self-cleaning property.

A flame-retardant and superhydrophobic coating was applied to cotton textiles by a conventional pad-dry-cure method, which involved the deposition of branched poly(ethylenimine), polyacrylate soap-free latex and ammonium polyphosphate. The as-coated fabrics showed superhydrophobicity with a self-cleaning effect, and the fibers could generate a char layer in the flame-burning test, giving the fabrics a self-extinguishing property. Importantly, the resulting fabrics remained superhydrophobic after 75 commercial laundering cycles. The advantages of this method are being simple, affordable and easy to use in the factory production of large quantities of multifunctional textiles.

The functionalization of fabrics is important in both academic research and industrial areas. In this work, poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) fabrics were dipped into a solution of PVDF and PDMS in DMF/THF to coat fibers with PVDF/PDMS. Then, the as-coated fabrics with wet PVDF/PDMS were squeezed to remove the residual liquid with a scraping bar and put into a non-solvent water to induce roughening of the PVDF/PDMS coatings on the fibers, through a phase inversion process to obtain robust superhydrophobic PET fabrics. The obtained fabrics show a water contact angle of 164.4° ± 2.1° and a slide angle less than 4°. The superhydrophobicity of the fabrics was chemically stable in both acidic and alkaline solution, and could endure prolonged UV irradiation. In addition, after 5000 abrasion cycles or 150 times laundering, the coating still maintained superhydrophobicity and had a relatively low sliding angle. Also, the superhydrophobic fabrics displayed excellent self-cleaning properties. This simple process without using expensive equipment can be applied into the practical production of PET fabrics.

Aromatic silica nanocapsules were fabricated by loading fragrance into hollow mesoporous silica nanoparticles, and coated onto fibers. The obtained fabrics with aromatic nanocapsules were then hydrophobized by a water-repellent finishing agent to fabricate superhydrophobic aromatic fabrics. Scanning electron microscopy was conducted to investigate the morphologies of the nanocapsules and the fabric surfaces. Contact angle measurements of water droplets were conducted to show the wettability of the fabrics. The releasing properties of the silica nanocapsules and the superhydrophobic aromatic fabrics were thoroughly investigated. It was shown that the aromatic silica nanocapsules coated on fibers not only roughened the fabrics, favouring the superhydrophobicity of the substrates, but also imparted the fabrics with long-lasting fragrance due to their sustained-release effect. Importantly, the superhydrophobic property enhanced the sustained releasing performance of fragrance of the aromatic fabrics.

Superhydrophobic surfaces were fabricated via surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization of fluorinated methacrylates on poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) fabrics. The hydrophobicity of the PET fabric was systematically tunable by controlling the polymerization time. The obtained superhydrophobic fabrics showed excellent chemical robustness even after exposure to different chemicals, such as acid, base, salt, acetone, and toluene. Importantly, the fabrics maintained superhydrophobicity after 2500 abrasion cycles, 100 laundering cycles, and long time exposure to UV irradiation. Also, the surface of the superhydrophobic fabrics showed excellent antifouling properties.

Hydrophobic polydimethylsiloxane based coatings were self-roughened on textiles via a nonsolvent-induced phase-separation method. The self-roughened coatings have superior durability in superhydrophobicity. The obtained superhydrophobic and superoleophilic materials were demonstrated as excellent filters for continuous oil–water separation. The work showed large-scale and practical application for consecutive collection of oil from water.

Superhydrophobic fabrics were fabricated by creation of roughening structures through alkali etching of fibers, modification with mercapto silanes and hydrophobization via thiol–ene click chemistry. Alkali etching resulted in nanoscale pits on the fiber surfaces roughening the fabrics with hierarchical structures, and improved the affinity of fibers for mercapto silanes. The click reaction between dodecafluoroheptyl methacrylate and sulfhydryl fibers lowered the surface energy, making the fabrics superhydrophobic with superoleophilicity. The as-obtained superhydrophobic fabrics showed excellent chemical robustness even after exposure to different chemicals, such as acid, base, salt, acetone, and toluene. Importantly, the fabrics maintained superhydrophobicity after 4500 abrasion cycles, 200 laundering cycles, as well as long time exposure to UV irradiation. The fabrics could be applied in oil/water separation due to their superhydrophobic and superoleophilic properties.

Removal of chromium ions is significant due to their toxicity and harmfulness, however it is very difficult to remove trace Cr(III) complexed with organics because of their strong stability. Herein, a novel electrospun polyacrylonitrile (PAN) nanofibers (NF) adsorbent was fabricated and modified by tannic acid (TA) by a facile blend electrospinning approach for removal of trace Cr(III) in an organic complex. Utilizing the large specific area of nanofibers in the membrane and the good affinity of tannic acid on the nanofibers for hydrolyzed collagen by hydrophobic and hydrogen bonds, the as-prepared PAN&ndash, TA NFM exhibited good adsorption toward Cr(III)-collagen complexes and effective reduction of total organic carbon in tannage wastewater. The maximal adsorption capacity of Cr(III) is 79.48 mg g&minus, 1 which was obtained at the pH of 7.0 and initial Cr(III) concentration of 50 mg g&minus, 1. Importantly, the batch adsorption could decrease the Cr(III) concentration from 10&ndash, 20 mg L&minus, 1 to under 1.5 mg L&minus, 1, which showed great application potential for the disposal of trace metal ions in organic complexes from wastewater.

Maintaining hierarchical roughness and a low surface energy property are keys to long lasting superhydrophobic surfaces. By spraying polystyrene/SiO2 core/shell nanoparticles as a coating skeleton and polydimethylsiloxane as hydrophobic interconnection, lasting and self-healing superhydrophobic surfaces were fabricated. The coating exposed new roughening structures during the rubbing process, thus maintaining a suitable hierarchical roughness, favouring a superhydrophobic property of the surface. Also, the superhydrophobicity of a damaged surface from an air plasma treatment could be automatically restored in 12 h at room temperature or by heat curing and tetrahydrofuran treatment, which helped with the release of hydrophobic polystyrene. This strategy may find practical applications in all kinds of substrates because spray coating is a simple process, and the obtained surfaces possess lasting superhydrophobicity.

Superhydrophobic and superoleophilic textiles were fabricated by a simple sol–gel coating using tetraethoxysilane and 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexamethyl disilazane as precursors. After coating, the fibers were decorated with Si(CH3)3 functionalized SiO2 nanoparticles, complimenting the microscale roughness inherent in the textile weave and lowering the surface energy. The textiles indicated superhydrophobic and superoleophilic property simultaneously. Utilizing these properties, a setup was designed using the textile as a screen mesh to filter oil through down to a collector and leave water drops rolling over, realizing continuous oil–water mixture separation.

ZnO nanostructures with different morphologies were grown on poly(ethylene terephthalate) fibers by a hydrothermal process at a low temperature of 93 °C. Then the ZnO nanorod decorated fibers were layer-by-layer coated with silica forming ZnO/SiO 2 core/shell structures on the textiles, and hydrophobized with hexadecyltrimethoxysilane. Scanning electron microscopy showed that introduction of ZnO nanostructures onto fibers made the textiles roughened dramatically, favoring the formation of superhydrophobic surfaces. Ultraviolet–visible spectrophotometry analysis and contact angle measurement of the textiles showed that growth of ZnO on the fibers enhanced the UV-blocking ability of the textiles, and coating of silica improved not only the UV-shielding property but also the UV-durability of the superhydrophobicity on the textiles.

A robust, self-healing superhydrophobic poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) fabric was fabricated by a convenient solution-dipping method using an easily available material system consisting of polydimethylsiloxane and octadecylamine (ODA). The surface roughness was formed by self-roughening of ODA coating on PET fibers without any lithography steps or adding any nanomaterials. The fabric coating was durable to withstand 120 cycles of laundry and 5000 cycles of abrasion without apparently changing the superhydrophobicity. More interestingly, the fabric can restore its super liquid-repellent property by 72 h at room temperature even after 20000 cycles of abrasion. Meanwhile, after being damaged chemically, the fabric can restore its superhydrophobicity automatically in 12 h at room temperature or by a short-time heating treatment. We envision that this simple but effective coating system may lead to the development of robust protective clothing for various applications.

ZnO/SiO2 core/shell particles were fabricated and coated on poly (ethylene terephthalate) (PET) textiles, followed by hydrophobization with hexadecyltrimethoxysilane, to achieve superdrophobic surfaces with UV-shielding property. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was employed to reveal the fabrication of ZnO/SiO2 core/shell particles. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was conducted to investigate the surface morphologies of the textile and the coating of the fibers. UV-Vis spectrophotometry and contact angle measurement indicated that the incorporation of ZnO onto fibers imparted UV-blocking property to the textile surface, while the coating of SiO2 shell on ZnO made the superhydrophobicity of the as-treated PET textile surface UV-durable.

Silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) were produced on cotton fibers by reduction of [Ag(NH3)2]+ complex with glucose. Further modification of the fibers coated by Ag NPs with hexadecyltrimethoxysilane led to superhydrophobic cotton textiles. Scanning electron microscopy images of the textiles showed that the treated fibers were covered with uniform Ag NPs, which generate a dual-size roughness on the textiles favouring the formation of superhydrophobic surfaces, and the Ag NPs formed dense coating around the fibers rendering the intrinsic insulating cotton textiles conductive. Antibacterial test showed that the as-fabricated textiles had high antibacterial activity against the gram-negative bacteria, Escherichia coli. These multifunctional textiles might find applications in biomedical electronic devices.

ZnO nanorod forests were grown wrapping nylon fibers using a two-step process. In the first step, the formation of ZnO seeds at nylon fiber surfaces was induced by the dip coating of ZnO nanosols; in the second step, the growth of the ZnO seeds into nanorod forests was carried out via a wet chemical route in a bath containing an equimolar solution of zinc nitrate hexahydrate and hexamethylenetetramine. The as-obtained ZnO-coated nylon fibers were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, Energy dispersive X-ray spectrum imaging, and X-ray diffraction, respectively. Thermal gravimetric analysis of the pristine and the ZnO-coated nylon fibers was also conducted.

By the complex coating of amino- and epoxy-functionalized silica nanoparticles on epoxy-functionalized cotton textiles to generate a dual-size surface roughness, followed by hydrophobization with stearic acid, 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorodecyltrichlorosilane, or their combination, superhydrophobic surfaces were prepared. The static water contact angle of the most superhydrophobic sample as prepared reaches 170° for a 5 μL droplet. The wettability and morphology were investigated by contact angle measurement and scanning electron microscopy. Characterizations by Fourier transformation infrared spectroscopy, and thermal gravimetric analysis were also conducted.

This review summarizes the key topics in the field of large-area fabrication of superhydrophobic surfaces, concentrating on substrates that have been used in commercial applications. Practical approaches to superhydrophobic surface construction and hydrophobization are discussed. Applications of superhydrophobic surfaces are described and future trends in superhydrophobic surfaces are predicted.

By coating fibers with titania sol to generate a dual-size surface roughness, followed by hydrophobization with stearic acid, 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorodecyltrichlorosilane or their combination, hydrophilic cotton fabrics were made superhydrophobic. The surface wettability and topology of cotton fabrics were studied by contact angle measurement and scanning electron microscopy. The UV-shielding property of the treated fabrics was also characterized by UV-vis spectrophotometry.

Superhydrophobic surfaces on PET textiles were fabricated by combined bioinspiration from the strong adhesion of marine mussels and the two-scale structure of lotus leaves under mild conditions. Dopamine can spontaneously polymerize in alkaline aqueous solution to form a thin adhesive layer of polydopamine (PDA) wrapping on the micro-scale fibers. The as-formed thin PDA layer worked as a reactive template to generate PDA nanoparticles decorated on the fiber surfaces, imparting the textiles with excellent UV-shielding properties as well as a hierarchical structure similar to the morphology of the lotus leaf. After further modification with perfluorodecyl trichlorosilane, the textiles turned superhydrophobic with a water contact angle higher than 150°. Due to the strong adhesion of PDA to a wide range of materials, the present strategy may be extendable to fabrication of superhydrophobic surfaces on a variety of other substrates.

Rough structures created from bulk materials at the surface could have superior durability. Superhydrophobic colorful surfaces were fabricated through chemical etching of the fiber surfaces, followed by diffusion of fluoroalkylsilane into fibers. The obtained superhydrophobic textiles show strong durability against severe abrasion, long-time laundering, and boiling water.

ZnO/SiO(2) core/shell particles were fabricated by successive coating of multilayer polyelectrolytes and then a SiO(2) shell onto ZnO particles. The as-prepared ZnO/SiO(2) core/shell particles were coated on poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) textiles, followed by hydrophobization with hexadecyltrimethoxysilane, to fabricate superhydrophobic surfaces with UV-shielding properties. Transmission electron microscopy and ζ potential analysis were employed to evidence the fabrication of ZnO/SiO(2) core/shell particles. Scanning electron microscopy and thermal gravimetric analysis were conducted to investigate the surface morphologies of the textile and the coating of the fibers. Ultraviolet-visible spectrophotometry and contact angle measurement indicated that the incorporation of ZnO onto fibers imparted UV-blocking properties to the textile surface, while the coating of SiO(2) shell on ZnO prohibited the photocatalytic degradation of hexadecyltrimethoxysilane by ZnO, making the as-treated PET textile surface show stable superhydrophobicity with good UV-shielding properties.

By coating fibers with titania sol to generate a dual-size surface roughness, followed by hydrophobization with stearic acid, 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorodecyltrichlorosilane or their combination, hydrophilic cotton fabrics were made superhydrophobic. The surface wettability and topology of cotton fabrics were studied by contact angle measurement and scanning electron microscopy. The UV-shielding property of the treated fabrics was also characterized by UV-vis spectrophotometry.

Superhydrophobic surfaces were fabricated by the complex coating of silica nanoparticles with functional groups onto cotton textiles to generate a dual-size surface roughness, followed by hydrophobization with stearic acid, 1H, 1H, 2H, 2H-perfluorodecyltrichlorosilane or their combination. The wettability and morphology of the as-fabricated surfaces were investigated by contact angle measurement and scanning electron microscopy. Characterizations by transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transformation infrared spectroscopy, and thermal gravimetric analysis were also conducted.