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Item type:Project, Access status: without files , 3D-printed multi-material polymer microarchitectures for normal and inverse Salvinia surfacesBio-inspired surfaces that either retain stable air layers under water or actively repel gas bubbles offer significant opportunities for process and reactor engineering, for example in drag reduction, wetting control, and improved gas–liquid management. Prominent natural examples are the leaves of the aquatic fern Salvinia and the surfaces of backswimmer insects, which rely on hierarchical hair-like micro- and nanostructures to stabilize air. Despite extensive research, robust design rules linking surface micro-architecture, material combinations, and mechanical properties to interfacial performance are still lacking. The aim of this project is to establish such structure–function relationships in a systematic and quantitative manner. To this end, a combinatorial laser-based printing platform (cLIFT – combinatorial Laser-Induced Forward Transfer) will be used to fabricate elastic, multi-material polymer micro- and nanostructures with precisely controlled geometry, chemical polarity, and stiffness on technology-relevant substrates. The focus lies on hair-like architectures featuring defined anchoring regions, hydrophobic–hydrophilic junctions, and simplified undercut or tip geometries. The project addresses four key challenges: (i) reproducible fabrication of anchored yet liftable polymer hairs on metals, glasses, and polymers; (ii) mechanically robust integration of hydrophobic and hydrophilic materials within individual microstructures; (iii) controlled formation of undercut-like tip geometries that stabilize or repel gas–liquid interfaces; and (iv) quantitative correlations between geometry, elasticity, spatial arrangement, and static as well as dynamic wetting behavior. By creating systematic libraries of surface architectures and applying standardized wetting and bubble-dynamics assays, the project will derive general design principles for Salvinia-inspired and inverse-Salvinia surfaces. The results will provide a foundation for the rational design of functional polymer coatings for reactors, separation technologies, and other multiphase systems.16 - Some of the metrics are blocked by yourconsent settings
Item type:Project, Access status: without files , 35