Chemo-Mechanical Due-Biomimetic Approach for Ultra-Stable Adsorption Across Multiple Scenarios

The unique adhesion capabilities of soft-bodied creatures such as leeches and octopuses have provided considerable inspiration for the development of artificial adhesive materials. However, previous studies have either focused on the design of sucker structures or concentrated on the synthesis of adhesive materials, with the combination of these two aspects not yet having been deeply investigated. In this study, inspired from leech's unique adsorption ability, a biomimetic approach is proposed that combined artificial sucker and mucus, to achieve remarkable adhesion stability on rough surfaces using 5 cm diameter silicone suction cups. Even on 40-mesh substrates, the mucus-coated suction cups maintained over 95% of their adhesion force compared to smooth surfaces. The formation of a liquid seal by the mucus at the suction cup edges effectively prevented gas leakage on rough substrates, thus ensuring stable adhesion. This experiments across various scenarios and real-world objects substantiated the stability and versatility of this strategy. In summary, a straightforward method is presented for achieving reliable adhesion with centimeter-scale suction cups, thereby unveiling new avenues for the development of commercially viable adhesion devices.