Polymer surface with t-shaped microstructure and fabrication method therefor and applications thereof

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11110415-B2
Application number	US-201615763161-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 25, 2016
Priority date	Sep 25, 2015
Publication date	Sep 7, 2021
Grant date	Sep 7, 2021

Abstract

The present invention discloses polymer surfaces with T-shaped microstructure and their fabrication method and applications. The polymer surfaces with the T-shaped microstructure are characterized in that T-shaped microposts arrange orderly on them, and nanobulges arrange orderly on the top surfaces of the micronails of the T-shaped microposts. A flexible insert is designed and manufactured according to the geometry of the T-shaped microposts, and nanogrooves are manufactured on the cavity surface of an injection mold according to the geometry of the nanobulges on the top surfaces of the micronails. The flexible insert is mounted on the injection mold cavity. An injection molding machine is used to inject the molten polymer into the injection mold cavity. Then the polymer surfaces with the T-shaped microposts, on the top surfaces of the micronails of which the nanobulges arrange orderly, are molded. The polymer surfaces with the T-shaped microstructure exhibit robust Cassie-Baxter state and moderate surface adhesion to water droplets, and can be used for quantitative collection, lossless transportation or micromixing of microdroplets.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A polymer surface comprising a T-shaped microstructure, wherein the T-shaped microstructure comprises T-shaped microposts arranged on the polymer surface an upper portion of the T-shaped microposts comprises micronails and nanobulges arranged on top surfaces of micronails of the T-shaped microposts; wherein the micronails have cross-sectional dimensions of 20-80 μm and heights of 20-80 μm, and the nanobulges have cross-sectional dimensions of 10-900 nm.

2. The polymer surface according to claim 1 , wherein the cross-sectional shape of the T-shaped microposts is round, ellipse, polygon, arch, or multi-arc; and the multi-arc is obtained by connecting multi-segment arcs.

3. The polymer surface according to claim 1 , wherein the microposts have cross-sectional dimensions of 5-35 μm and heights of 20-80 μm, and the central distances between two adjacent microposts are 50-100 μm.

4. The polymer surface according to claim 1 , wherein the nanobulges are on the polymer surface below the T-shaped microstructure.

Assignees

• Univ South China Tech

Inventors

• Huang Hanxiong
• Chen Anfu

Classifications

• B29C45/263 Primary

  with mould wall parts provided with fine grooves or impressions, e.g. for record discs · CPC title

• B01F33/3021

  the components to be mixed being combined in a single independent droplet, e.g. these droplets being divided by a non-miscible fluid or consisting of independent droplets · CPC title

• B01F33/3022 Primary

  the components being formed by independent droplets which are alternated, the mixing of the components being achieved by diffusion between droplets · CPC title

• B81B2203/0315

  Cavities · CPC title

• B81B1/00

  Devices without movable or flexible elements, e.g. microcapillary devices · CPC title