Magnetic-Actuated Robot Enables High-Performance Underwater Bubble Maneuvering on Laser-Textured Biomimetic Slippery Surfaces.

Journal: Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids
PMID:

Abstract

Controllable underwater gas bubble (UGB) transport on a surface is realized by geography-/stimuli-induced wettability gradient force (). Unfortunately, the high-speed maneuvering of UGBs along free routes on planar surfaces remains challenging. Herein, a regime of magnetism-actuated robot (MAR) mounting on biomimetic laser-ablated lubricant-impregnated slippery surfaces (LA-LISS) is reported. Leveraging on LA-LISS, MAR-entrained UGBs can move along arbitrary directions through the loading of a tracing magnetic trigger. The underlying hydrodynamics is that MAR-entrained UGBs would be actuated slipping upon a giant magnetic-induced towing force (). Once the magnetism stimuli is discharged, vanishes immediately to immobilize the UGBs on LA-LISS. Thanks to the MAR's robust bubble affinity, a typical UGB (20 μL) on the optimized LA-LISS can be accelerated at 500 mm/s and gain an ultrafast velocity of over 205 mm/s that far exceeds previously reported figures. Moreover, fundamental physics renders MAR antibuoyancy, steering locomotive UGBs on the inclined LA-LISS. Significantly, an MAR propelling UGBs to configure desirable patterns, realize on-demand coalescence, remedy the cutoff switch, as well as facilitate a programmable light-control-light optical shutter is successfully deployed. Compared with previous smart surfaces, the current multifunctional regime is more competent for harnessing UGBs featuring an unparalleled transport velocity independent of the feeble .

Authors

  • Chao Chen
    Department of Neonatology, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, National Children's Medical Center, Shanghai, China.
  • Hao Yao
    Department of Materials Physics and New Energy Device, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei 230009, China.
  • Yunlong Jiao
    Institute of Tribology, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei 230009, China.
  • Chong Jia
    Department of Materials Physics and New Energy Device, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei 230009, China.
  • Sizhu Wu
    Medical Information Innovation Research Center, Institute of Medical Information and Library, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences/Peking Union Medical College , Beijing, China.