Superhydrophobicity of Bionic Alumina Surfaces Fabricated by Hard Anodizing

Bionic alumina samples were fabricated on convex dome type aluminum alloy substrate using hard anodizing technique. The convex domes on the bionic sample were fabricated by compression molding under a compressive stress of 92.5 MPa. The water contact angles of the as-anodized bionic samples were measured using a contact angle meter （JC2000A） with the 3μL water drop at room temperature. The measurement of the wetting property showed that the water contact angle of the unmodi- fied as-anodized bionic alumina samples increases from 90° to 137° with the anodizing time. The increase in water contract angle with anodizing time arises from the gradual formation of hierarchical structure or composite structure. The structure is composed of the micro-scaled alumina columns and pores. The height of columns and the depth of pores depend on the ano- dizing time. The water contact angle increases significantly from 96° to 152° when the samples were modified with self-assembled monolayer of octadecanethiol （ODT）, showing a change in the wettability from hydrophobicity to su- per-hydrophobicity. This improvement in the wetting property chemical modification. is attributed to the decrease in the surface energy caused by the

The Mechanism of Drag Reduction around Bodies of Revolution Using Bionic Non-Smooth Surfaces

Bionic non-smooth surfaces （BNSS） can reduce drag. Much attention has been paid to the mechanism of shear stress reduction by riblets. The mechanism of pressure force reduction by bionic non-smooth surfaces on bodies of revolution has not been well investigated. In this work CFD simulation has revealed the mechanism of drag reduction by BNSS, which may work in three ways. First, BNSS on bodies of revolution may lower the surface velocity of the medium, which prevents the sudden speed up of air on the cross section. So the bottom pressure of the model would not be disturbed sharply, resulting in less energy loss and drag reduction. Second, the magnitude of vorticity induced by the bionic model becomes smaller because, due to the sculpturing, the growth of tiny air bubbles is avoided. Thus the large moment of inertia induced by large air bubble is reduced. The reduction of the vorticity could reduce the dissipation of the eddy. So the pressure force could also be reduced. Third, the thickness of the momentum layer on the model becomes less which, according to the relationship between the drag coefficient and the momentum thickness, reduces drag.

Experimental Study on Influence of Dimples on Lubrication Performance of Glass Fiber-epoxy Resin Composite under Natural Seawater Lubrication

Bionic non-smooth surface is widely applied in metal and ceramics materials. In order to introduce this technology to high pressure seawater pump, the influence of bionic non-smooth surface on the engineering plastics used in pump should be investigated. The comparative tests are carried out with a ring-on-disc configuration under 800, 1000, 1200 and 1400 r/min in order to research the influence of the bionic non-smooth surface on glass fiber-epoxy resin composite（GF/EPR） under natural seawater lubrication. The disc surfaces are textured with five kinds of pits, which are semi-spherical, conical, cone-cylinder combined, cylindrical pits and through holes, respectively. A smooth surface is tested as reference. The results show that the lubrication performance of dimpled GF/EPR sample is much better than that of the smooth sample under all rotational speeds. The semi-spherical pits surface has more obvious friction reduction than the others, which shows that the least reduction is approximately 43.29% of smooth surface under 1200 r/rain. However, the wear level is only marginally influenced by dimples. The surface morphology investigations disclose severe modifications caused by abrasive wear primarily. The results are helpful to vary friction properties of GF/EPR by non-smooth surface, or provide references to the design of non-smooth surfaces under certain condition.

Anti-adhesive Property of Maize Leaf Surface Related with Temperature and Humidity

The anti-adhesive surfaces have always aroused great interest of worldwide scientists and engineers. But in practical ap- plications, it often faces the threat and impact of temperature and humidity. In this work, the excellent anti-adhesive perform- ance of maize leaf under high temperature and humidity were investigated in detail. Firstly, the adhesion forces of the maize leaf surface under different temperature and humidity were measured by using Atomic Force Microscopy （AFM）. The temperature of the substrate was varied between 23 ~C to 100 ~C, and the ambient relative humidity is from 18% to 100%. It was found that the adhesion force of maize leaf decreased with the increase of temperature and humidity. The mechanism of its excellent anti-adhesive performance of maize leaf under high temperature and relative humidity was revealed. The transverse and lon- gitudinal ridges on maize leaf surface interlace with each other, forming small air pockets, which reduces the actual contact area between the object and the maize leaf. With the increase of humidity, the liquid film will be formed in the air pockets gradually and so much water vapor is produced with increase of tempera^tre. Then the air flow rate increases though the wavy top of transverse ridges, inducing the dramatic decrease of adhesion force. Inspired by this mechanism, four samples with this bionic structure were made. This functional ＂biomimetic structure＂ would have potential value in the wide medical equipments such as high frequency electric knife with anti-adhesion surface under high temperature and high humidity.

Simulation and experimental study on drag reduction and anti-adhesion of subsoiler with bionic surface

A new subsoiler with placoid scale microstructure bionic surface was proposed which mimicked shark skin to reduce tillage resistance and soil adhesion during subsoiling cultivation.The contour curves of placoid scale microstructure on shark skin were fitted,and two kinds of bionic subsoiler with continuous and discontinuous microstructures were designed and fabricated,respectively.The effects of different bionic surfaces on tillage resistance were investigated by finite element simulation and experiment.The results indicated that the bionic subsoiler with discontinuous microstructure reduced the horizontal and vertical force by 21.3%and 24.8%,respectively.The subsoiler with discontinuous microstructure surface can prevent the adhesion between the soil and subsoiler surface more efficiently.

Regulation of the Macrophage Phenotype on Titanium Metal by Surface Modification

The regulation of macrophage phenotype(M1/M2)is very important for tissue repair.The macrophage phenotypes could be affected by the physical and chemical parameters of implant surface.The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of surface modifications of titanium metals on macrophage phenotype.The medical pure titanium metals(PT-Ti)subjected to Anodic Oxidation(AO-Ti),Sand Blasting/acid etching(SLA-Ti)and Plasma-sprayed HA coating(HA coating-Ti)were used for regulating the phenotype of macrophage.The results showed that the Raw264.7 cells of AO-Ti groups had no obvious pseudopodia and could spread evenly in all directions.The levels of IL-1βand TNF-α,which belong to pro-inflammatory genes,expressed by the cells on AO-Ti groups were the lowest among all of the modified titanium groups.But,the levels of IL-10 and TGF-β,which belong to anti-inflammatory genes,expressed on AO-Ti groups were much higher than those on the other groups.Furthermore,the AO-Ti could regulate the expression of SOCS-1 and SOCS-3 to affect the active of NF-κB signaling.The gene expression results of macrophages showed that the AO-Ti was more conductive to inhibit the expression of M1-related genes and promote the expression of M2-related genes in an inflammatory environment.The AO-Ti was more beneficial to tissue repair than other modified titanium metals.The results showed that the anodic oxidation is an effective method to regulate the phenotype of macrophages.

Smart Bionic Surfaces with Switchable Wettability and Applications

In order to satisfy the needs of different applications and more complex intelligent devices,smart control of surface wettability will be necessary and desirable,which gradually become a hot spot and focus in the field of interface wetting.Herein,we review interfacial wetting states related to switchable wettability on superwettable materials,including several classical wetting models and liquid adhesive behaviors based on the surface of natural creatures with special wettability.This review mainly focuses on the recent developments of the smart surfaces with switchable wettability and the corresponding regulatory mechanisms under external stimuli,which is mainly governed by the transformation of surface chemical composition and geometrical structures.Among that,various external stimuli such as physical stimulation(temperature,light,electric,magnetic,mechanical stress),chemical stimulation(pH,ion,solvent)and dual or multi-triggered stimulation have been sought out to realize the regulation of surface wettability.Moreover,we also summarize the applications of smart surfaces in different fields,such as oil/water separation,programmable transportation,anti-biofouling,detection and delivery,smart soft robotic etc.Furthermore,current limitations and future perspective in the development of smart wetting surfaces are also given.This review aims to offer deep insights into the recent developments and responsive mechanisms in smart biomimetic surfaces with switchable wettability under external various stimuli,so as to provide a guidance for the design of smart surfaces and expand the scope of both fundamental research and practical applications.

Bio‐inspired low wear and durable lubrication interfacial system based on thixotropic hydrogel for artificial joints

Inspired by the excellent wear resistance and lubrication of articular joints,a novel bionic interfacial system was proposed by combining thixotropic hydrogel with surface porous Ultrahigh Molecular Weight Polyethylene(UHMWPE).Thixotropic hydrogel,synthesised by gelatin,alginate sodium,tannic acid and weak crosslinking by Ca2þ(Gel‐TA‐Alg@Ca2þ),was used as a lubricant due to its shear‐thinning when loaded,then the re-covery viscosity to be benefitted for reserving in surface pores on UHMWPE when unloaded.Surface porous UHMWPE was fabricated by using hydroxyapatite particles as porogen to control its porosity,pore size,surface roughness and surface energy(PE‐HA).Gel‐TA‐Alg@Ca2þsignificantly reduced average coefficients of friction and wear factors compared to those under normal saline and calf serum solution lubricating after recipro-cating tribological testing.Notably,Gel‐TA‐Alg@Ca2þstill maintained thixotropy and was stored in surface pores of UHMWPE even after tribological testing for 7200 min.Thus,durable lubrication could be realised due to the synergistic effect of surface porous structure and thixotropy.Stribeck curves showed the characterisations of mixed,elasto-hydrodynamic and hydrodynamic,but without boundary lubrications for PE‐30HA under three lubricants.The present results might provide the potential application to construct the durable lubrication bionic articular joint interfacial system for artificial joints.

Bionic Research on Fish Scales for Drag Reduction

To reduce friction drag with bionic method in a more feasible way, the surface microstructure of fish scales was analyzed attempting to reveal the biologic features responding to skin friction drag reduction. Then comparable bionic surface mimicking fish scales was fabricated through coating technology for drag reduction. The paint mixture was coated on a substrate through a self-developed spray-painting apparatus. The bionic surface with micron-scale caves formed spontaneously due to the interra- cial convection and deformation driven by interfacial tension gradient in the presence of solvent evaporation. Comparative experiments between bionic surface and smooth surface were performed in a water tunnel to evaluate the effect of bionic surface on drag reduction, and visible drag reduction efficiency was obtained. Numerical simulation results show that gas phase de- velops in solid-liquid interface of bionic surface with the effect of surface topography and partially replaces the solid-liquid shear force with gas-liquid shear force, hence reducing the skin friction drag effectively. Therefore, with remarkable drag re- duction performance and simple fabrication technology, the proposed drag reduction technique shows the promise for practical applications.

A Simple Method for Fabrication of Bionic Superhydrophobic Zinc Coating with Crater-like Structures on Steel Substrate

Surface modification with superhydrophobicity is a popular and challenging research field on metals. In this work, a simple method was used to fabricate a bionic superhydrophobic zinc coating with crater-like structures on pipeline steel surface. This method involved electrodeposition of zinc coating and chemical reaction in perfluorooctanoic acid ethanol solution. The per- fluorooctanoic acid with low surface free energy was not only used for chemical etching but also used for fluorinated modifi- cation. The contact angle of water on such superhydrophobic zinc coating was up to 154.21°, and the sliding angle was less than 5° due to the micro crater-like structures and the low surface free energy. Moreover, the prepared superhydrophobic zinc coating demonstrated excellent self-cleaning property and great stability at room temperature, and the contact angle of water on this coating remained stable after storage in air for more than 80 days. This superhydrophobic zinc coating will open much wider applications of electrodeposition metal coating, including self-cleaning property, and can be easily extended to other metals.

Effects of Bionic Units in Different Scales on the Wear Behavior of Bionic Impregnated Diamond Bits

Based on anti-wear theory of soil animals, the samples of impregnated diamond bit with bionic self-regenerated non-smooth surface were designed and fabricated. Such a bionic surface was characterized by concave-shape units of different scales that continuously maintained their shape and function during the whole working process. Abrasion tests were carried out to investigate the performance of samples. Results showed that the bionic samples exhibit excellent wear resistance and drilling performance under the action of bionic self-regenerated units, especially those with units of 2 mm - 3 mm diameter. The par- ticle-trapping mechanism coming from the self-regenerated concaves and the lubricating mechanism coming from the con- tinuously self-supplying of solid lubricant are important reasons for reducing or even avoiding the severe abrasions. The im- proved drilling performance of bionic samples derives from, on the one hand, the back edge of bionic unit that contributes to exposing new diamond and supplying additional shear stresses to increase the cutting ability, on the other hand, the enhanced load per unit area due to the decreased contact area at the frictional interface. The relationship between the wear behavior and the scale of bionic unit was revealed. The unit of smaller scale on the bionic samples can enhance the shear stress level. Further reducing the scale to a contain extent will diminish the wear resistance of sample. While increasing the scale can lead to the poor lubricating effect.