Miniature Boat Fabrication with Striking Loading Capacity in Seawater from Hydrophobic Steel Mesh

Abstract

A superhydrophobic steel mesh film was prepared by combination of macro-scale rough surface and low surface energy material treatment through a facile coating method. The contact angle for seawater is measured to be as high as 130.16°. A reformed Cassie-Baxter equation was applied for the theoretical predictions of this novel material for the first time. Good agreement between the predictions and experiments was obtained. The loading capacities of these boats, fabricated from the resulting hydrophobic steel meshes, were also characterized. The highest loading weight about 17.50 g was obtained by the steel mesh treated by 2.0wt% (heptadecafluoro-1,1,2,2,-tetradecyl)trimethoxysilane solution. The striking loading capacity of this miniature boat may be attributed to the air film trapped around the mesh surface. This novel superhydrophobic steel mesh material have wide applications on medical materials, marine materials and smart materials.