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

这项教师早期职业发展（Career）资助为设计和开发一类具有多功能特性的新型生物驱液材料提供资金。这些仿生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、东卡壁虎、甲虫、弹尾草和猪笼草。由于它们在微观和纳米尺度上的表面结构，许多这些自然物种表现出独特的宏观润湿、粘附和光学特性。在理解这些自然表面结构的过程中，将使用先进的微纳米制造技术开发出具有多功能功能的新型生物启发材料。功能组合，如定向驱液，减少摩擦，集水，以及可切换润湿，附着力和光学特性，是特别感兴趣的。这项研究的结果将导致开发一类新的多功能材料和具有各种工业和医疗应用的表面涂层，包括但不限于抗生物污垢、防结冰、减少摩擦、伪装、可逆粘附、热管理和流体收集或分离的涂层。通过各种自然表面工程机制的“混合和匹配”，这些多功能材料将进一步丰富现有的生物启发材料库，其中大多数材料目前都是以单个自然物种为模型的。该研究还将有助于开发新型多功能材料，展示润湿，粘附和光学性能之间的相互作用。最终，这项研究的结果将增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.