One-step solution immersion process to fabricate superhydrophobic surfaces on light alloys

A simple and universal one-step process bas been developed to render light alloys (including AZ91D Mg alloy, 5083 Al alloy, and TC4 Ti alloy) superhydrophobic by immersing the substrates in a solution containing low-surface-energy molecules of 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorooctyltrichlorosilane (PFOTS, 20 μL), ethanol (10 mL), and H2O (10 mL for Al and Mg alloy)/H2O2 (15%, 10 mL for Ti alloy). Field-emission scanning electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and water contact angle measurements have been performed to characterize the morphological features, chemical composition, and wettability of the surfaces, respectively. The results indicate that the treated light alloys are rough-structured and covered by PFOTS molecules; consequently, the surfaces show static contact angles higher than 150° and sliding angles lower than 10°. This research reveals that it is feasible to fabricate superhydrophobic surfaces (SHS) easily and effectively without involving the traditional two-step processes. Moreover, this one-step process may find potential application in the field of industrial preparation of SHS because of its simplicity and universality.