Effects of surface wettability on gecko adhesion underwater

Recent experiments have shown that gecko adhesion underwater depends significantly on surface wettability. Theoretical models of a gecko seta adhering on different substrates are firstly established in order to disclose such an adhesion mechanism. The results show that the capillary force induced by nano-bubbles between gecko seta and the substrate is the mainly influencing factor. The capillary force exhibits an attractive feature between gecko setae and hydrophobic surfaces underwater. However, it is extremely weak or even repulsive on hydrophilic surfaces underwater. A self-similarly splitting model is further considered to simulate multiple gecko setae on substrates underwater. It is interesting to find that the total capillary force depends significantly on the number of nano-bubble bridges and wettability of substrates. The total force is attractive and increases monotonically with the increase of the splitting number on hydrophobic substrates underwater. However, it decreases drastically or even becomes repulsive on hydrophilic substrates underwater. The present result can not only give a reasonable explanation on the existing experimental observations but also be helpful for the design of novel biomimetic adhesives. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.