Loss of superhydrophobicity of hydrophobic micro/nano structures during condensation

Condensed liquid behavior on hydrophobic micro/nano-structured surfaces is a subject with multiple practical applications, but remains poorly understood. In particular, the loss of superhydrophobicity of hydrophobic micro/nanostructures during condensation, even when the same surface shows water-rep...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Scientific reports 2015-04, Vol.5 (1), p.9901, Article 9901
Main Authors: Jo, HangJin, Hwang, Kyung Won, Kim, DongHyun, Kiyofumi, Moriyama, Park, Hyun Sun, Kim, Moo Hwan, Ahn, Ho Seon
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
147/135
639/166/988
639/925/357/537
Condensation
Humanities and Social Sciences
Hydrophobic surfaces
Hydrophobicity
multidisciplinary
Science
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Summary:Condensed liquid behavior on hydrophobic micro/nano-structured surfaces is a subject with multiple practical applications, but remains poorly understood. In particular, the loss of superhydrophobicity of hydrophobic micro/nanostructures during condensation, even when the same surface shows water-repellant characteristics when exposed to air, requires intensive investigation to improve and apply our understanding of the fundamental physics of condensation. Here, we postulate the criterion required for condensation to form from inside the surface structures by examining the grand potentials of a condensation system, including the properties of the condensed liquid and the conditions required for condensation. The results imply that the same hydrophobic micro/nano-structured surface could exhibit different liquid droplet behavior depending on the conditions. Our findings are supported by the observed phenomena: the initiation of a condensed droplet from inside a hydrophobic cavity, the apparent wetted state changes and the presence of sticky condensed droplets on the hydrophobic micro/nano-structured surface.
ISSN:2045-2322
2045-2322
DOI:10.1038/srep09901