Water condensation on zinc surfaces treated by chemical bath deposition

Water condensation, a complex and challenging process, is investigated on a metallic (Zn) surface, regularly used as anticorrosive surface. The Zn surface is coated with hydroxide zinc carbonate by chemical bath deposition, a very simple, low-cost and easily applicable process. As the deposition time increases, the surface roughness augments and the contact angle with water can be varied from 75 degrees to 150 degrees, corresponding to changing the surface properties from hydrophobic to ultrahydrophobic and super-hydrophobic. During the condensation process, the droplet growth laws and surface coverage are found similar to what is found on smooth surfaces, with a transition from Cassie-Baxter to Wenzel wetting states at long times. In particular, it is noticeable in view of corrosion effects that the water surface coverage remains on order of 55%. (C) 2010 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.