posted on 2021-07-13, 12:36authored byYahui Su, Xinran Fan, Suwan Zhu, Zhicheng Li, Yucheng Bian, Chuanzong Li, Yiyuan Zhang, Lin Liu, Yanlei Hu, Jiawen Li, Dong Wu
The
flexible maneuvering of microliter liquid droplets is significant
in both fundamental science and practical applications. However, most
current strategies are limited to the rigid locomotion on confined
geographies platforms, which greatly hinder their practical uses.
Here, we propose a magnetism-actuated superhydrophobic flexible microclaw
(MSFM) with hierarchical structures for water droplet manipulation.
By virtue of precise femtosecond laser patterning on magnetism-responsive
poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) films doped with carbonyl iron powder,
this MSFM without chemical contamination exhibits powerful spatial
droplet maneuvering advantages with fast response (<100 ms) and
lossless water transport (∼50 cycles) in air. We further performed
quantitative analysis of diverse experimental parameters including
petal number, length, width, and iron element proportion in MSFM impacting
the applicable maneuvering volumes. By coupling the advantages of
spatial maneuverability and fast response into this versatile platform,
typical unique applications are demonstrated such as programmable
coalescence of droplets, collecting debris via droplets, tiny solid
manipulation in aqueous severe environments, and harmless living creature
control. We envision that this versatile MSFM should provide great
potential for applications in microfluidics and cross-species robotics.