Pulsed Laser Induced Triple Layer Copper Oxide Structure for Durable Polyfunctionality of Superhydrophobic Coatings

Copper and its alloys are among the most used metals for the industry. However, using bare copper and its alloys in technology is compromised because corrosion and poor abrasion resistance of copper impacts its performance in industrial and technological applications. In this paper, a strategy based on combining the laser chemical modification of metal's surface in a controlled atmosphere and laser texturing, followed by chemisorption of low energy compounds is effectively used for fabrication of a superhydrophobic coating with enhanced protective and functional properties on the mild copper alloy. It is shown that the formation of duplex cuprous/cupric oxide layers with a sequence of a dense and porous parts of cupric oxide layer allows one to successfully design the superhydrophobic coating with high photoactivity and enhanced stability of functional properties in corrosive liquids. The fabricated coatings display the enhanced resistance to abrasive wear, long preservation of a heterogeneous wetting mode in contact with the electrolyte, durable photoactivity, and low corrosion rate. Even more, the corrosion rate is notably decreasing with time upon prolonged contact with the corrosive medium.