Engineering biomimetic superhydrophobic surfaces of electrospun nanomaterials

Biomimetics provides a model for developments of functional surfaces with special wettability. Recently, manufacturing bio-inspired superhydrophobic surfaces has become an increasingly hot research topic. The electrospinning technique is a versatile and effective method for manufacturing nanomaterials with controllable compositions and structures, and therefore provides an ideal strategy for construction of superhydrophobic surfaces on a large scale. After a brief description of several superhydrophobic surfaces inspired by nature, we highlighted the recent progresses in design and fabrication of these bio-inspired superhydrophobic surfaces via electrospinning technique. The studies on the switchable wettability of nanofibrous surface brought about by external stimuli are also addressed. We conclude with a summary of current and future research efforts and opportunities in the development of electrospun nanomaterials for superhydrophobic applications. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.