Sharif Digital Repository

We propose a facile and cost effective method for fabricating superhydrophobic surfaces with significant drag reduction in a wide velocity range. A dual structure superhydrophobic aluminum surface with a hydrophobic Al2O3micro- and nanoparticle coating and also another superhydrophobic surface with a nanoparticle layer coating are fabricated. Then, the resulted drag from each of these surfaces is measured carefully in different velocities and compared with the drag of the as-received aluminum surface. Our results reveal that the surface with the dual structure experiences drag reduction in a wider velocity range compared with the nanoparticle coated sample. Drag reduction of the dual... 

The use of superhydrophobic surfaces is one the most promising methods for reducing the friction and increasing the flow rate in fluid transfer systems. Because in such systems the surface structure plays a key role, in this study, we explore the performance of the hierarchical nanostructures. These nanostructures are inspired by the superhydrophobic surface of the lotus leaf. We consider a flow between two walls with hierarchical nanostructures and simulate the system via the molecular dynamics method. The size of the nanostructures and the distance between them have been studied to find whether a design with a maximum flow rate exists. The nanostructures have two parts, a bigger part on... 

The use of superhydrophobic surfaces is one the most promising methods for reducing the friction and increasing the flow rate in fluid transfer systems. Because in such systems the surface structure plays a key role, in this study, we explore the performance of the hierarchical nanostructures. These nanostructures are inspired by the superhydrophobic surface of the lotus leaf. We consider a flow between two walls with hierarchical nanostructures and simulate the system via the molecular dynamics method. The size of the nanostructures and the distance between them have been studied to find whether a design with a maximum flow rate exists. The nanostructures have two parts, a bigger part on... 

Stability of Cassie-Baxter (CB) state is very critical in application of superhydrophobic surfaces. The most industrial applications of superhydrophobic surfaces are limited by the transition from the CB state to Wenzel (W) state. In this research, CB state stability of branched hierarchical ZnO nanowires (BH-ZnO NWs) was investigated as compared with ZnO nanowires (ZnO NWs) by using theoretical and experimental approaches. For this purpose, surface of the BH-ZnO NWs and ZnO NWs were modified by thin layers of methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS). The MTMS thickness was optimized by varying NH4F (0, 5, 10, 20 μL) as used catalyst. The highest water contact angle (WCA) was measured at about 153 ± 3°... 

Nowadays, increasing the CO2 emissions are one of the inevitable challenges in the world. In addition, in many industries, fossil fuels are the main source of energy demands which worsen the problem. Since in most applications, the performance and energy loss are highly affected by the drag force, many investigations have been proposed to improve the surface properties to moving surface against the water, and consequently, increasing drag reduction. To this end, one effective way is utilizing superhydrophobic coatings. In this study, we prepare two different superhydrophobic coatings using Al2O3 nanoparticles (NPs) modified by HMDS (1,1,1,3,3,3-Hexamethyldisilazane) and PDMS... 

Superhydrophobic surfaces have been used for reducing friction in micro- and nanochannels. In the present work, water flow between two carbon walls with nanostructures made of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) via the molecular dynamics method has been studied. The structure of this polymer can change based on the temperature of the environment, so that by increasing the temperature the structure becomes hydrophobic. This property has been studied and the effect of multiple factors on the slip length is presented. The effects of the number of monomers in the polymer, the distance between the polymers, and the temperature on the flow field are investigated. The results reveal that the slip length... 

Superhydrophobic surfaces demonstrate significant characteristics which make them suitable for a wide variety of applications. In this study, we propose a facile, one-step, and cost-effective anodizing scheme using aluminum nitrate/stearic acid mixture solution to create a superhydrophobic surface on an aluminum mesh. The surface outperforms the surface anodized by the widely used oxalic acid solution in terms of superhydrophobicity and water-surface friction behavior. The proposed surface reduced the friction by 11% on average respective to the surface prepared by oxalic acid. The durability of the introduced superhydrophobic surface has also been investigated. The proposed surface retained... 

In this research, initially anodization process was used to fabricate ZnO nanorods on Zn substrate and then RF sputtering technique was applied to grow a thin layer of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE, Teflon) on the coated ZnO nanorods for producing a superhydrophobic surface. According to scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations, ZnO nanorods were formed with average diameter and length of about ∼180 nm and 14 μm, respectively. Superhydrophilic property of ZnO nanorods and superhydrophobic property of PTFE/ZnO nanorods was investigated by water contact angle (WCA) measurements. It was found that the contact angle varied with the PTFE deposition time. The highest contact angle... 

A superhydrophobic nanocomposite coating was fabricated using a simple procedure. The nanocomposite is composed of an acrylic copolymer and modified silica nanoparticles. The acrylic copolymer was prepared by free radical copolymerization of methyl methacrylate and dodeycl methacrylate monomers. Silica nanoparticles were synthesized and modified with an alkyl silane reagent, hexadecyltrimethoxysilane. A mixture of acrylic copolymer and modified silica nanoparticles, dispersed in dichloromethane, was then sprayed on glass and filter paper surface. Chemical composition and structure of the coatings were investigated by FTIR, FESEM, AFM, 1H-NMR and GPC. The wettability of the prepared coating... 

A complete cycle of droplet nucleation, growth, coalescence and jumping on different textured hydrophobic and superhydrophobic surfaces is studied for the first time, using a 2-D double distribution function thermal lattice Boltzmann method. First, droplet nucleation mechanism on smooth and rough surfaces is studied in detail. The results reveal the presence of cooled vapor layer instability in the condensation on completely smooth surfaces. However, on the rough surfaces and near the roughness a completely different mechanism is observed and the nucleation occurs on the roughness wedges. Also, the condensation on different textured surfaces with nominal contact angles θa=90°,120°,155° is... 

Electrospun porous membrane; Superhydrophilic surfaces; Superhydrophobic surfaces; Cell culture; Organ on a chip; Flexible membrane; Strong membrane; Surface modications  

onstructing of the scaffolds for cell culture applications has long been of interest for engineering researchers and biologist. In this study, a novel process is utilized for construction of suitable membrane with a high mechanical strength and appropriate surface behavior. Poly (dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) is electrospun into fine fibers using poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) as the carrier polymer in different weight ratios. Since the surface behavior of all PDMS substrates is moderately hydrophobic (120 < contact angle (CA) < 150), the electrospun membranes with higher PDMS ratios show slightly higher hydrophilicity. Direct plasma treatment is utilized to change the interfacial wettability... 

Drop motion on different types of new proposed micro-structure surfaces has been numerically investigated to find the optimum structure in view point of ice formation delaying. The droplet automatically moves on the inclined surfaces due to gravity forces. To validate the numerical algorithm, three different bench mark problems have been considered. The results indicate that the present algorithm is trustable for the presented numerical simulations. Then the validated numerical approach has been used to simulate droplet motion on nine proposed superhydrophobic surfaces in the same conditions. Comparison the drop motion on different micro-structure surfaces at different time indicate that... 

Nowadays, one of the biggest concerns in the world is increasing the CO2 emissions and global warming due to the over-consumption of fossil fuels. In addition, under the intense market competition, the demand for more efficient systems with higher performance and lower energy consumption has escalated. Since the drag force contributes to a considerable percentage of the energy loss and reducing the performance, a large number of studies have been conducted to improve the surface characteristics and, subsequently, declining the drag force. Making the surface superhydrophobic is one of the most effective ways for this purpose. In this work, two different superhydrophobic surfaces using SiO2... 

A hierarchical superhydrophobic surface is prepared via a two-step boiling water immersion process and anodization of the treated aluminum substrate in a novel hydrophobic electrolyte of aluminum nitrate and stearic acid mixture at room temperature. The immersion time in boiling water had a significant influence on the morphology and durability of the sample. A pseudoboehmite coating is created on the aluminum surface during the boiling process, as revealed by the field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrophotometer results. The energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy analysis confirmed the formation of hydrophobic coating surface after...