Systems and methods for super-hydrophobic and super-oleophobic surface treatments

摘要

The field of the invention relates to systems and methods for surface treatments, and more particularly to systems and methods for surface treatments, modifications or coatings using micro- and nano-structure particles for both super-hydrophobic and super-oleophobic properties. In one embodiment, a method of treating surfaces to impart both super-hydrophobic and super-oleophobic properties includes the steps of pre-treating a substrate surface; assembling dual-scale nanoparticles onto the surface of the substrate; and treating the dual-scale nanoparticle coated surface with SiCl4 to cross-link the nanoparticles to each other and to the surface of the substrate creating a robust nano-structured topographic surface having both super-hydrophobic and super-oleophobic properties.

主权项

1. A method of treating substrate surfaces to impart them with super-hydrophobic and super-oleophobic properties comprising:
(a) pre-treating the substrate surface to produce chemically active peroxides on the surface; (b) synthesizing monodispersed silica nanoparticles and monodispersed larger silica particles; (c) modifying the monodispersed silica nanoparticles and monodispersed larger silica particles prepared in step (b) with different functional groups, wherein the smaller particles attach to the larger particles via chemical reactions between the functional groups, producing dual-scale particles then having hydrophobic properties; (d) submersing the substrate into a Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) trough apparatus, the apparatus having a water sub-phase with a monolayer of the dual-scale particles spread on the sub-phase surface; (e) raising the substrate from said sub-phase into the air at a first speed to deposit the monolayer of dual-scale particles onto the substrate surface, wherein the first speed allows the deposited dual-scale particles on the surface to have enough time to undergo a dehydration process and form covalent bonds between the monolayer of dual-scale particles and the surface, the monolayer of dual-scale particles is a formation of a 2-dimensional planar array structure with a predetermined thickness having re-entrant angles; and (f) treating the substrate surface with SiCl4 to cross-link the dual-scale particles to each other and to the surface, wherein the substrate surface is coated with a nano-structured topographic surface retaining the re-entrant angles of the structure to impart super-hydrophobic and super-oleophobic properties.