Superhydrophobic plastic for self-cleaning surfaces and beyond

• Main Author: Muhammad Hamzah Bin Hashim
• Other Authors: Hong Li
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: Nanyang Technological University 2024
• Subjects: Engineering; Superhydrophobic; Plastic; Self-cleaning
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/176458
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Self-cleaning ability is one of the major benefits of superhydrophobic surfaces. It allows for impurities or debris to be carried away by droplets of water. Lotus leaves are one of the most popular superhydrophobic surfaces in nature. The objective of the experiment is to manufacture very uniform and long nanowires on a plastic substrate, similar to protrusions found on lotus leaves. By using multistage ultrasonic embossing, hierarchical structures were able to be successfully manufactured. Moreover, preliminary tests suggest that with hierarchical structures, the contact angle of water droplets on the surface is high and simulated self-cleaning tests suggest that water droplets are efficient at lifting debris off the surface.