Scientists are constantly looking to nature to guide them in the development of effective new technologies. Most recently, researchers hailing from several British and Australian universities have partnered to explore the unique surface properties of insect wings. Ultimately, the team’s goal is to replicate these desirable properties to produce novel polymeric coatings suitable for NEMS and MEMS systems, as well as for lab-on-a-chip devices for diagnostic applications.
Of particular interest to the researchers are wings that are superhydrophobic and those that are extremely lubricious. Some insect wings, according to the team, are so hydrophobic that they immediately repel even the smallest drop of water. Others exhibit negligible friction, which allows for minuscule dust particles to be sloughed away with little force, thereby exhibiting a self-cleaning capability of sorts.
Using atomic force microscopy, the researchers have determined that the forces required to slough nanoscopic dust particles off of a wing fall in the range of 2 to 20 nN. Upon obtaining these data, the researchers then employed an insect wing membrane to cast a polymer surface in polydimethylsiloxane (PMDS). In turn, they were able to replicate the structure of the wing.
Details of the project will be shared in an upcoming 2010 issue of the International Journal of Nanomanufacturing.
Tags: Biomimetics, Emerging Technologies, Hydrophobic Coatings
