Superhydrophobic and superhydrophilic plant surfaces: an inspiration for biomimetic materials
Top Cited Papers
- 28 April 2009
- journal article
- review article
- Published by The Royal Society in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences
- Vol. 367 (1893), 1487-1509
- https://doi.org/10.1098/rsta.2009.0022
Abstract
The diversity of plant surface structures, evolved over 460 million years, has led to a large variety of highly adapted functional structures. The plant cuticle provides structural and chemical modifications for surface wetting, ranging from superhydrophilic to superhydrophobic. In this paper, the structural basics of superhydrophobic and superhydrophilic plant surfaces and their biological functions are introduced. Wetting in plants is influenced by the sculptures of the cells and by the fine structure of the surfaces, such as folding of the cuticle, or by epicuticular waxes. Hierarchical structures in plant surfaces are shown and further types of plant surface structuring leading to superhydrophobicity and superhydrophilicity are presented. The existing and potential uses of superhydrophobic and superhydrophilic surfaces for self-cleaning, drag reduction during moving in water, capillary liquid transport and other biomimetic materials are shown.Keywords
This publication has 78 references indexed in Scilit:
- Biological and Synthetic Self-Cleaning SurfacesMRS Bulletin, 2008
- Not drowning but photosynthesizing: probing plant plastronsNew Phytologist, 2008
- Underwater photosynthesis and respiration in leaves of submerged wetland plants: gas films improve CO2 and O2 exchangeNew Phytologist, 2007
- Harmless nectar source or deadly trap:Nepenthespitchers are activated by rain, condensation and nectarProceedings Of The Royal Society B-Biological Sciences, 2007
- Progess in superhydrophobic surface developmentSoft Matter, 2007
- Classification and terminology of plant epicuticular waxesBotanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 1998
- Crystallography of waxes - an electron diffraction study of refined and natural productsJournal of Physics D: Applied Physics, 1997
- Wettability of leaves of a selection of New Zealand plantsNew Zealand Journal of Botany, 1974
- Surface factors affecting the wetting of leavesPesticide Science, 1970
- Wettability of porous surfacesTransactions of the Faraday Society, 1944