Progress in improving the mechanical durability of superhydrophobic materials

Superhydrophobic materials are widely used in many fields such as antifouling and anticorrosion, underwater drag reduction and oil-water separation due to their unique wettability. However, when most superhydrophobic materials are subjected to external mechanical wear, it is easy to cause the collapse of the surface microstructure or the consumption of low surface energy substances, which affects or loses the superhydrophobic properties. Through the analysis of the surface wetting model, two main ideas for enhancing the mechanical durability of superhydrophobic materials are clarified, and the typical testing methods and characteristics of the mechanical durability of superhydrophobic materials are introduced. Then, based on the analysis and review of the research status and development trends at home and abroad, four strategies to improve the mechanical durability of superhydrophobic materials are summarized, including designing micro-nano multi-level rough structure, introducing polymer bonding layer, constructing self-similar structures and self-healing functionalization. Finally, the challenges to improve the mechanical durability of superhydrophobic materials are summarized, and their future development prospects are prospected.