Superhydrophobicity of polyvinylidene fluoride membrane fabricated by chemical vapor deposition from solution

• Published in: Applied surface science Vol. 255; no. 16; pp. 7263 - 7267
• Main Authors: Zheng, Zhenrong, Gu, Zhenya, Huo, Ruiting, Ye, Yonghong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 30.05.2009; Elsevier
• Subjects: Chemical vapor deposition; Condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties; Condensed matter: structure, mechanical and thermal properties; Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; Exact sciences and technology; Methyltrichlorosilane; Physics; Polyvinylidene fluoride; Superhydrophobic; Superhydrophobic; Methyltrichlorosilane; Polyvinylidene fluoride; Chemical vapor deposition; CVD; Film growth
• ISSN: 0169-4332; 1873-5584
• DOI: 10.1016/j.apsusc.2009.03.084

Due to the chemical stability and flexibility, polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membranes are widely used as the topcoat of architectural membrane structures, roof materials of vehicle, tent fabrics, and so on. Further modified PVDF membrane with superhydrophobic property may be even superior as the coating layer surface. The lotus flower is always considered to be a sacred plant, which can protect itself against water, dirt, and dust. The superhydrophobic surface of lotus leaf is rough, showing the micro- and nanometer scale morphology. In this work, the microreliefs of lotus leaf were mimicked using PVDF membrane and the nanometer scale peaks on the top of the microreliefs were obtained by the method of chemical vapor deposition from solution. The surface morphology of PVDF membrane was investigated by scanning electronic microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscope (AFM). Elemental composition analysis by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) revealed that the material of the nanostructure of PVDF membrane was polymethylsiloxane. On the lotus-leaf-like PVDF membrane, the water contact angle and sliding angle were 155° and 4°, respectively, exhibiting superhydrophobic property.