Functionally Integrated Device with Robust and Durable Superhydrophobic Surface for Efficient, Continuous, and Recyclable Oil-Water Separation

A cost-efficient, universal adhesive layer-involved strategy is demonstrated for the construction of robust superhydrophobic surfaces on a variety of materials. This strategy uses recycled rubber particles (RRPs) and low-surface-energy coating to generate superhydrophobicity, which are fixed on the substrates by a precoated E-44 resin (ER) adhesive layer. Benefitting from the robust ER adhesive layer and wear-resistant rubber particles, the ER/RRPs composite coated low-surface-energy coating (ER/RRPs/LSEC composite) shows high robustness under various harsh conditions including repeated abrasion, sunlight radiation, and acid/basic corrosion. When evaluated as functionally integrated device for oil spill cleanup, these superhydrophobic structures show excellent oil-absorption and oil-water separation properties. For example, the copper foam device coated with the ER/RRPs/LSEC composite shows a high oil-water separating efficiency of 95% before and after mechanical abrasion. This strategy provides a new toolbox for constructing robust superhydrophobic surfaces with oil-water separation applications and offers a novel insight into the durability of artificial superhydrophobic surfaces.