Multifunctional ultrathin aluminum foil: oil/water separation and particle filtration

We present here a kind of novel multifunctional ultrathin aluminum foil which consists of large-area regular micropore arrays covered with nanostructures. These multiscale micro/nanostructures show underwater superoleophobic ability (contact angle > 150 degrees) and oil/water separation function. The novel foils were realized by one-step femtosecond laser irradiation, which is a simple and promising method for preparing special micro/nanostructures due to its high precision, excellent controllability, one-step processing and compatible with various materials. In addition, the micropore arrayed aluminum foil also shows robust filtering performance for particles with different sizes, exhibiting multifunctional applications. This work provides a new way for the construction of aluminum foil-based micropore arrays which can be applied in high-efficiency oil/water separation, particle sorting, and other broader fields.