Autoclaving-induced in-situ grown hierarchical structures for construction of superhydrophobic surfaces: A new route to fabricate antifouling coatings

A simple fabrication method was developed to prepare a superhydrophobic aluminum surface. The approach involved the in-situ formation of a micro/nano-structure and fluorination treatment on an aluminum surface. Based on the combination of micro/nanostructures and low-energy compositions, the as-prepared surface became super-repellent toward deionized water and biological liquids including egg white and egg yolk. A water contact angle of 160° and a contact angle hysteresis of 1.8° were observed on the fluorinated aluminum surface with hierarchical structures. Meanwhile, the surface presented excellent antifouling performance against marine diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum by the air layer captured within the micro/nanostructures. The results indicated that the structures played a critical role in the formation of a superhydrophobic surface with excellent antifouling capability. The work provides a simple and highly efficient method to fabricate superhydrophobic aluminum surfaces with exceptional antifouling performance. [Display omitted] •Superhydrophobic alumina surfaces were fabricated by a simple method.•The micro/nano binary structure improved the hydrophobicity of samples.•A contact angle of 160° and a contact angle hysteresis of 1.8° were observed.•These surfaces showed excellent antifouling performances by declining 98% algal adhesion.