Langmuir, Vol.25, No.13, 7226-7228, 2009
Assembly of Self-Assembled Monolayer-Coated Al2O3 on TiO2 Thin Films for the Fabrication of Renewable Superhydrophobic-Superhydrophilic Structures
A renewable superhydrophobic-superhydrophilic pattern with a minimum dimension of 50 mu m is prepared from octadecyltrimethoxysilane self-assembled monolayer-covered superhydrophobic Al2O3 overlayers on a superhydrophilic TiO2 surface via self-assembly and calcination of boehmite (AlOOH center dot nH(2)O) particles. The resulting Al2O3 layer plays dual roles as a superhydrophobic layer and as a UV-blocking layer for the underlying TiO2.