Mask-assisted chemical processing methods to fabricate wettability patterns on copper substrates for liquid manipulation

Extreme wettability-patterned surfaces have attracted great attentions due to their excellent application prospects for liquid manipulation. However, developing a simple and universal method to fabricate wettability patterns on a variety of metals remains a great challenge. In this work, we developed three specific preparation approaches to fabricate wettability patterns on copper substrate using chemical processing combined with mask technology. Surface wettability can be suitably controlled by changing the solution concentration and immersing time. The surface has good stability and low pollution under external action. Three preparation methods have differences in preparation process, wettability and mask function. On the basis of these approaches, various complex wettability patterns could be prepared on different metal substrates using designed masks. Furthermore, various wettability-patterned surfaces were successfully fabricated for liquid manipulating applications, such as controlling fluid shape and water transport. These methods proposed is expected to have promising application potential in patternable printing, water collection and heat-dissipation devices.