Facile fabrication of fluorine-free slippery lubricant-infused cerium stearate surfaces for marine antifouling and anticorrosion application

Abstract

Marine biofouling is a major technical challenge in shipping industry. The construction of green antifouling surface is a feasible solution to inhibit the marine biofouling. Liquid-infused surfaces inspired by Nepenthes have attracted widespread research in recent years with broad applications. In this work, a facile and rapid electrodeposition process was used to fabricate superhydrophobic surfaces with different morphologies (bayberry and hyacinths like structures) by changing electrodeposition time, and subsequent infusion of fluorine-free lubricant to form lubricant-infused surfaces. The properties of two kinds of superhydrophobic surfaces and two kinds of slippery liquid-infused surfaces were studied. For the lubricant-infused surfaces, the hyacinths-like lubricant-infused surface exhibited the best antifouling properties by preventing 95% adhesion of Phaeodactylum tricornutum and 97% adhesion of Bacillus sp., due to the nanosheet structures on the top of the microspheres offered a strong capillary force to minimize lubricant loss. Compared with superhydrophobic surface, the lubricant-infused surfaces exhibited better antifouling and anticorrosion properties. This study could shed some light on the construction of green antifouling technology.