CAREER: Nature's Mix and Match: Designing Omniphobic Surfaces with Multi-Functional Characteristics

这项学院早期职业发展(Career)补助金提供资金，用于设计和开发一种具有多功能特征的新型生物灵感驱液材料。这些生物灵感材料的蓝图是基于多种自然物种的表面工程原理，包括但不限于荷叶、蝴蝶、壁虎、甲虫、跳尾和猪笼草。由于它们在微米和纳米尺度上的表面结构，这些天然物种中的许多都显示出独特的宏观润湿、粘合和光学性质。在理解这些自然表面结构的过程中，将利用先进的微和纳米制造技术开发具有多功能的新型生物启发材料。这项研究的结果将导致开发一类新型多功能材料和表面涂层，具有不同的工业和医疗应用，包括但不限于用于抗生物污垢、防冰、减摩、伪装、可逆粘合、热管理和流体收集或分离的涂层。通过各种天然表面工程机制的混合搭配，这些多功能材料将进一步丰富现有的生物灵感材料库，其中大部分材料目前都是以单个自然物种为模型的。这项研究还将有助于开发具有润湿性、粘附性和光学性能相互作用的新型多功能材料。最终，这项研究的结果将加强公众对生物启发技术的理解，以及它们对技术进步的重要性。

This Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) grant provides funding for the design and development of a new class of biologically inspired liquid-repellent materials with multi-functional characteristics. The blueprints of these bio-inspired materials is based on the surface engineering principles of multiple natural species, including but not limited to the lotus leaf, butterfly, Tokay gecko, beetle, springtail, and the pitcher plant. Enabled by their surface architectures at the micro and nanometer scales, many of these natural species exhibit unique macroscopic wetting, adhesion, and optical properties. In understanding these natural surface architectures, novel biologically inspired materials engineered to have multi-functional capabilities will be developed using advanced micro- and nanomanufacturing techniques. Combinations of functions, such as directional liquid repellency, friction reduction, water harvesting, as well as switchable wetting, adhesion, and optical characteristics, are of particularly interest.The results of this research will lead to the development of a new class of multi-functional materials and surface coatings with various industrial and medical applications, including but not limited to coatings for anti-biofouling, anti-icing, friction reduction, camouflage, reversible adhesion, thermal management, and fluid collection or separation. Through a "mix and match" of various natural surface engineering mechanisms, these multi-functional materials will further enrich the existing library of biologically inspired materials, in which most of these materials are currently modeled after individual natural species. The research will also contribute to the development of novel multi-functional materials exhibiting interplay between wetting, adhesion, and optical properties. Ultimately, the outcomes of this research will enhance the public understanding of biologically inspired technology, as well as their importance to technological advancement.