Ultrafast Self-Propelled Directional Liquid Transport on the Pyramid-Structured Fibers with Concave Curved Surfaces.

Self-propelled directional liquid transport (SDLT) has been observed on many natural substrates, serving as an efficient strategy to utilize surrounding liquids for a better habitat to the local environment. Drawing inspiration, various artificial materials capable of SDLT have been developed. However, the liquid transport velocity is normally very low (ca.

One-Step Fabrication of Robust Superhydrophobic Steel Surfaces with Mechanical Durability, Thermal Stability, and Anti-icing Function.

Superhydrophobic metallic materials have drawn broad research interest because of promising applications in various fields. The mechanical stability of superhydrophobic surfaces is currently a major concern limiting their practical applications. Herein, we developed a simple method to fabricate robust superhydrophobic surfaces on stainless steel via direct ultrafast laser microprocessing.

Bioinspired Controllable Liquid Manipulation by Fibrous Array Driven by Elasticity.

Fibers exhibit excellent performance in liquid manipulation that is normally aroused by either the structural or the chemical gradient. Here, we developed radially arranged fiber arrays with different fibrous elasticities that exhibited distinctly different performances in liquid manipulation in terms of the fibrous elastocapillary coalescence, the high-efficiency water encapsulation, and the inability to manipulate liquid. It is proposed that the fiber elasticity acts as a driving force when interacting with liquid, equivalent with the structural and chemical gradient.