Heat Treatment Temperature Effect on Wettability of Laser-Machined Aluminum Surface

For the last few years, due to the importance of superhydrophobic metal surface and its practical applications, it has attracted wide attention. Laser-induced superhydrophobic metal surface correspondence is one of the more intriguing processes being researched. However, it is still a challenge to shorten the time of wettability transition (from superhydrophilic to superhydrophobic). In this paper, the superhydrophobic surface with controllable adhesion was obtained by nanosecond laser etching and heat treatment of the aluminum plates. The impact of heat treatment temperature and time on the surface wettability of a laser-ablated aluminum plate was studied. It was found that heat treatment can promote the surface conversion from superhydrophilic to superhydrophobic and shorten the conversion time. It can also be observed that when the temperature increases from 100 degrees C to 200 degrees C, the time required for corresponding wettability transformation will be less, and the optimal process parameters are a heating temperature of 150 degrees C and heating time is 1.5h. This study provides a simple and efficient way for preparation of superhydrophobic surfaces on metal, which should help with the commercialization of superhydrophobic surfaces. Graphic abstract

Automated summary

This study focuses on the preparation of superhydrophobic surfaces on metal by nanosecond laser etching and heat treatment. It was found that heat treatment can promote the transition from superhydrophilic to superhydrophobic surface and shorten the transition time. The optimal process parameters are a heating temperature of 150 degrees C and heating time of 1.5 hours.