Abstract
Unidirectional liquid transport without any need of external energy has drawn worldwide attention for its potential applications in various fields such as microfluidics, biomedicine and mechanical engineering. In nature, numerous creatures have evolved such extraordinary unidirectional liquid transport ability, such as spider silk, Sarracenia’s trichomes, and Nepenthes alata’s peristome, etc. This review summarizes the current progresses of natural unidirectional liquid transport on 1-Dimensional (1D) linear structure and 2-Dimensional (2D) surface structure. The driving force of unidirectional liquid transport which is determined by unique structure exist distinct differences in physics. The fundamental understanding of 1D and 2D unidirectional liquid transport especially about hierarchical structural characteristics and their transport mechanism were concentrated, and various bioinspired fabrication methods are also introduced. The applications of bioinspired directional liquid transport are demonstrated especially in fields of microfluidics, biomedical devices and anti-icing surfaces. With newly developed smart materials, various liquid transport regulation strategies are also summarized for the control of transport speed, direction guiding, etc. Finally, we provide new insights and future perspectives of the directional transport materials.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Explore related subjects
Discover the latest articles, news and stories from top researchers in related subjects.Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Xu T, Lin Y C, Zhang M X, Shi W W, Zheng Y M. High-efficiency fog collector: Water unidirectional transport on heterogeneous rough conical wires. ACS Nano, 2016, 10, 10681–10688.
Wang T Q, Chen H X, Liu K, Li Y, Xue P H, Yu Y, Wang S L, Zhang J H, Kumacheva E, Yang B. Anisotropic Janus Si nanopillar arrays as a microfluidic one-way valve for gas-liquid separation. Nanoscale, 2014, 6, 3846–3853.
Shang L R, Cheng Y, Zhao Y J. Emerging droplet microfluidics. Chemical Reviews, 2017, 117, 7964–8040.
Ware C S, Smith-Palmer T, Peppou-Chapman S, Scarratt L R J, Humphries E M, Balzer D, Neto C. Marine antifouling behavior of lubricant-infused nanowrinkled polymeric surfaces. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2018, 10, 4173–4182.
Jokinen V, Kankuri E, Hoshian S, Franssila S, Ras R H A. Superhydrophobic blood — Repellent surfaces. Advanced Materials, 2018, 30, 1705104.
Wong T S, Kang S H, Tang S K Y, Smythe E J, Hatton B D, Grinthal A, Aizenberg J. Bioinspired self-repairing slippery surfaces with pressure-stable omniphobicity. Nature, 2011, 477, 443–447.
Zhang P F, Chen H W, Zhang L W, Ran T, Zhang D Y. Transparent self-cleaning lubricant-infused surfaces made with large-area breath figure patterns. Applied Surface Science, 2015, 355, 1083–1090.
Epstein A K, Wong T S, Belisle R A, Boggs E M, Aizenberg J. Liquid-infused structured surfaces with exceptional anti-biofouling performance. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2012, 109, 13182–13187.
He M, Zhang Q L, Zeng X P, Cui D P, Chen J, Li H L, Wang J J, Song Y L. Hierarchical porous surface for efficiently controlling microdroplets’ self-removal. Advanced Materials, 2013, 25, 2291–2295.
Liu K S, Jiang L. Bio-inspired self-cleaning surfaces. Annual Review of Materials Research, 2012, 42, 231–263.
Nishimoto S, Bhushan B. Bioinspired self-cleaning surfaces with superhydrophobicity, superoleophobicity, and super-hydrophilicity. RSC Advances, 2013, 3, 671–690.
Li D K, Wang Z T, Wu D H, Han G C, Guo Z G. A hybrid bioinspired fiber trichome with special wettability for water collection, friction reduction and self-cleaning. Nanoscale, 2019, 11, 11774–11781.
Yu C L, Li C X, Gao C, Dong Z C, Wu L, Jiang L. Time-dependent liquid transport on a biomimetic topological surface. ACS Nano, 2018, 12, 5149–5157.
Zhao Z G, Li C X, Dong Z C, Yang Y C, Zhang L H, Zhuo S Y, Zhou X T, Xu Y C, Jiang L, Liu M J. Adaptive superamphiphilic organohydrogels with reconfigurable surface topography for programming unidirectional liquid transport. Advanced Functional Materials, 2019, 29, 1807858.
Parker A R, Lawrence C R. Water capture by a desert beetle. Nature, 2001, 414, 33–34.
Feng L, Li S H, Li Y S, Li H J, Zhang L J, Zhai J, Song Y L, Liu B Q, Jiang L, Zhu D B. Super-hydrophobic surfaces: From natural to artificial. Advanced Materials, 2002, 14, 1857–1860.
Prakash M, Quere D, Bush J W M. Surface tension transport of prey by feeding shorebirds: The capillary ratchet. Science, 2008, 320, 931–934.
Reis P M, Jung S H, Aristoff J M, Stocker R. How cats lap: Water uptake by felis catus. Science, 2010, 330, 1231–1234.
Zheng Y M, Bai H, Huang Z B, Tian X L, Nie F Q, Zhao Y, Zhai J, Jiang L. Directional water collection on wetted spider silk. Nature, 2010, 463, 640–643.
Ju J, Bai H, Zheng Y M, Zhao T Y, Fang R C, Jiang L. A multi-structural and multi-functional integrated fog collection system in cactus. Nature Communications, 2012, 3, 1247.
Ishii D, Horiguchi H, Hirai Y, Yabu H, Matsuo Y, Ijiro K, Tsujii K, Shimozawa T, Hariyama T, Shimomura M. Water transport mechanism through open capillaries analyzed by direct surface modifications on biological surfaces. Scientific Reports, 2013, 3, 3024.
Wong T S, Sun T L, Feng L, Aizenberg J. Interfacial materials with special wettability. MRS Bulletin, 2013, 38, 366–371.
Liu C C, Zhu J, Zheng Y M, Jiang L. Asymmetric ratchet effect for directional transport of fog drops on static and dynamic butterfly wings. ACS Nano, 2014, 8, 1321–1329.
Chen H W, Ran T, Gan Y, Zhou J J, Zhang Y, Zhang L W, Zhang D Y, Jiang L. Ultrafast water harvesting and transport in hierarchical microchannels. Nature Materials, 2018, 17, 935–942.
Chen H W, Zhang P F, Zhang L W, Liu H L, Jiang Y, Zhang D Y, Han Z W, Jiang L. Continuous directional water transport on the peristome surface of Nepenthes alata. Nature, 2016, 532, 85–89.
Song Y Y, Liu Y, Jiang H B, Li S Y, Kaya C, Stegmaier T, Han Z W, Ren L Q. Bioinspired Fabrication of one dimensional graphene fiber with collection of droplets application. Scientific Reports, 2017, 7, 12056.
Peng Y, He Y X, Yang S, Ben S, Cao M Y, Li K, Liu K S, Jiang L. Magnetically induced fog harvesting via flexible conical arrays. Advanced Functional Materials, 2015, 25, 5967–5971.
Ju J, Xiao K, Yao X, Bai H, Jiang L. Bioinspired conical copper wire with gradient wettability for continuous and efficient fog collection. Advanced Materials, 2013, 25, 5937–5942.
Cao M Y, Jin X, Peng Y, Yu C M, Li K, Liu K S, Jiang L. Unidirectional wetting properties on multi-bioinspired magnetocontrollable slippery microcilia. Advanced Materials, 2017, 29, 1606869.
Chen H W, Zhang L W, Zhang P F, Zhang D Y, Han Z W, Jiang L. A novel bioinspired continuous unidirectional liquid spreading surface structure from the peristome surface of Nepenthes alata. Small, 2017, 13, 1601676.
Huang Y, Stogin B B, Sun N, Wang J, Yang S K, Wong T S. A switchable cross-species liquid repellent surface. Advanced Materials, 2017, 29, 1604641.
Li K, Ju J, Xue Z X, Ma J, Feng L, Gao S, Jiang L. Structured cone arrays for continuous and effective collection of micron-sized oil droplets from water. Nature Communications, 2013, 4, 3276.
Shang L R, Yu Y R, Gao W, Wang Y T, Qu L L, Zhao Z, Chai R J, Zhao Y J. Bio-inspired anisotropic wettability surfaces from dynamic ferrofluid assembled templates. Advanced Functional Materials, 2018, 28, 1705802.
Lv J A, Liu Y Y, Wei J, Chen E Q, Qin L, Yu Y L. Photo-control of fluid slugs in liquid crystal polymer microactuators. Nature, 2016, 537, 179–184.
Li C X, Yu C L, Hao D Z, Wu L, Dong Z C, Jiang L. Smart liquid transport on dual biomimetic surface via temperature fluctuation control. Advanced Functional Materials, 2018, 28, 1707490.
Malvadkar N A, Hancock M J, Sekeroglu K, Dressick W J, Demirel M C. An engineered anisotropic nanofilm with unidirectional wetting properties. Nature Materials, 2010, 9, 1023–1028.
Hancock M J, Sekeroglu K, Demirel M C. Bioinspired directional surfaces for adhesion, wetting and transport. Advanced Functional Materials, 2012, 22, 2223–2234.
Sekeroglu K, Demirel M C. A fluidic device with polymeric textured ratchets. Polymer (Guildf), 2015, 58, 30–35.
Lorenceau E, Quere D. Drops on a conical wire. Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 2004, 510, 29–45.
Renvoisé P, Bush J, Prakash M, Quéré D. Drop propulsion in tapered tubes. EPL (Europhysics Letters), 2009, 86, 64003.
Xu W, Lan Z, Peng B L, Wen R F, Chen Y S, Ma X H. Directional movement of droplets in grooves: Suspended or immersed? Scientific Reports, 2016, 6, 18836.
Wang Q B, Su B, Liu H, Jiang L. Chinese brushes: Controllable liquid transfer in ratchet conical hairs. Advanced Materials, 2014, 26, 4889–4894.
Wang Q B, Yao X, Liu H, Quere D, Jiang L. Self-removal of condensed water on the legs of water striders. PNAS, 2015, 112, 9247–9252.
Chaudhury M K, Whitesides G M. How to make water run uphill. Science, 1992, 256, 1539–1541.
Daniel S, Chaudhury M K, Chen J C. Fast drop movements resulting from the phase change on a gradient surface. Science, 2001, 291, 633–636.
Fang G P, Li W, Wang X F, Qiao G J. Droplet motion on designed microtextured superhydrophobic surfaces with tunable wettability. Langmuir, 2008, 24, 11651–11660.
Choi W, Tuteja A, Mabry J M, Cohen R E, McKinley G H. A modified Cassie-Baxter relationship to explain contact angle hysteresis and anisotropy on non-wetting textured surfaces. Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 2009, 339, 208–216.
Yang J T, Yang Z H, Chen C Y, Yao D J. Conversion of surface energy and manipulation of a single droplet across micropatterned surfaces. Langmuir, 2008, 24, 9889–9897.
Wenzel R N. Resistance of solid surfaces to wetting by water. Industrial & Engineering Chemistry, 1936, 28, 988–994.
Cassie A B D, Baxter S. Wettability of porous surfaces. Transactions of the Faraday Society, 1944, 40, 546–551.
Feng S L, Hou Y P, Chen Y, Xue Y, Zheng Y M, Jiang L. Water-assisted fabrication of porous bead-on-string fibers. Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 2013, 1, 8363–8366.
Bai H, Tian X L, Zheng Y M, Ju J, Zhao Y, Jiang L. Direction controlled driving of tiny water drops on bioinspired artificial spider silks. Advanced Materials, 2010, 22, 5521–5525.
Shang L R, Fu F F, Cheng Y, Yu Y R, Wang J, Gu Z Z, Zhao Y J. Bioinspired multifunctional spindle-knotted microfibers from microfluidics. Small, 2017, 13, 1600286.
Bai H, Ju J, Sun R Z, Chen Y, Zheng Y M, Jiang L. Controlled fabrication and water collection ability of bioinspired artificial spider silks. Advanced Materials, 2011, 23, 3708–3711.
Chen Y, Wang L, Xue Y, Jiang L, Zheng Y M. Bioinspired tilt-angle fabricated structure gradient fibers: Micro-drops fast transport in a long-distance. Scientific Reports, 2013, 3, 2927.
Feng S L, Wang Q Q, Xing Y, Hou Y P, Zheng Y M. Continuous directional water transport on integrating tapered surfaces. Advanced Materials Interfaces, 2020, 7, 2000081.
Bai H, Wang L, Ju J, Sun R Z, Zheng Y M, Jiang L. Efficient water collection on integrative bioinspired surfaces with star-shaped wettability patterns. Advanced Materials, 2014, 26, 5025–5030.
Wang M, Liu Q, Zhang H R, Wang C, Wang L, Xiang B X, Fan Y T, Guo C F, Ruan S C. Laser direct writing of tree-shaped hierarchical cones on a superhydrophobic film for high-efficiency water collection. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2017, 9, 29248–29254.
Cao M Y, Ju J, Li K, Dou S X, Liu K S, Jiang L. Facile and large-scale fabrication of a cactus-inspired continuous fog collector. Advanced Functional Materials, 2014, 24, 3235–3240.
Heng X, Xiang M M, Lu Z H, Luo C. Branched ZnO wire structures for water collection inspired by cacti. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2014, 6, 8032–8041.
Park K C, Kim P, Grinthal A, He N, Fox D, Weaver J C, Aizenberg J. Condensation on slippery asymmetric bumps. Nature, 2016, 531, 78–82.
Deng S L, Shang W F, Feng S L, Zhu S P, Xing Y, Li D, Hou Y P, Zheng Y M. Controlled droplet transport to target on a high adhesion surface with multi-gradients. Scientific Reports, 2017, 7, 45687.
Chu K H, Xiao R, Wang E N. Uni-directional liquid spreading on asymmetric nanostructured surfaces. Nature Materials, 2010, 9, 413–417.
Higuera F, Medina A, Linan A. Capillary rise of a liquid between two vertical plates making a small angle. Physics of Fluids, 2008, 20, 102102.
Ponomarenko A, Quéré D, Clanet C. A universal law for capillary rise in corners. Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 2011, 666, 146–154.
Oliver J F, Huh C, Mason S G. Resistance to spreading of liquids by sharp edges. Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 1977, 59, 568–581.
Feng S L, Wang S J, Gao L C, Li G J, Hou Y P, Zheng Y M. Controlled directional water-droplet spreading on a high-adhesion surface. Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2014, 53, 6163–6167.
Garrod R P, Harris L G, Schofield W C, McGettrick J, Ward L J, Teare D O, Badyal J P. Mimicking a Stenocara beetle’s back for microcondensation using plasmachemical patterned superhydrophobic-superhydrophilic surfaces. Langmuir, 2007, 23, 689–693.
Zhai L, Berg M C, Cebeci F C, Kim Y, Milwid J M, Rubner M F, Cohen R E. Patterned superhydrophobic surfaces: Toward a synthetic mimic of the namib desert beetle. Nano Letters, 2006, 6, 1213–1217.
Liu C R, Sun J, Li J, Xiang C H, Che L F, Wang Z K, Zhou X F. Long-range spontaneous droplet self-propulsion on wettability gradient surfaces. Scientific Reports, 2017, 7, 7552.
Li J, Qin Q H, Shah A, Ras R H, Tian X, Jokinen V. Oil droplet self-transportation on oleophobic surfaces. Science Advances, 2016, 2, e1600148.
Kumar M, Bhardwaj R, Sahu K C. Wetting dynamics of a water droplet on micropillar surfaces with radially varying pitches. Langmuir, 2020, 36, 5312–5323.
Geng H, Bai H Y, Fan Y Y, Wang S Y, Ba T, Yu C M, Cao M Y, Jiang L. Unidirectional water delivery on a superhydrophilic surface with two-dimensional asymmetrical wettability barriers. Materials Horizons, 2018, 5, 303–308.
Muto K, Ishii D. Effects of anisotropic liquid spreading on liquid transport in arrow-like micropillar arrays. Colloids and Surfaces A: Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects, 2018, 544, 86–90.
Lin Y C, Hu Z Y, Gao C L, Guo Z Y, Li C, Zheng Y M. Directional droplet spreading transport controlled on tilt — Angle pillar arrays. Advanced Materials Interfaces, 2018, 5, 1800962.
Wang Y, Gao Y, Wyss H M, Anderson P D, Toonder J M J D. Artificial cilia fabricated using magnetic fiber drawing generate substantial fluid flow. Microfluidics & Nanofluidics, 2015, 18, 167–174.
Zhang P F, Chen H W, Li L, Liu H L, Liu G, Zhang L W, Zhang D Y, Jiang L. Bioinspired smart peristome surface for temperature — Controlled unidirectional water spreading. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2017, 9, 5645–5652.
Li Z M, Zhang D Y, Wang D Y, Zhang L W, Feng L, Zhang X Y. A bioinspired flexible film fabricated by surface-tension-assisted replica molding for dynamic control of unidirectional liquid spreading. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2019, 11, 48505–18511.
Zhang X Y, Wang D Y, Zhang Y X, Zhang D Y, Li Z M, Liu H. Bioinspired unidirectional liquid spreading channel — Principle, design, and manufacture. Advanced Materials Interfaces, 2020, 7, 1901791.
Li C, Wu L, Yu C, Dong Z, Jiang L. Peristome-mimetic curved surface for spontaneous and directional separation of micro water-in-oil drops. Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2017, 56, 13623–13628.
Li C X, Li N, Zhang X S, Dong Z C, Chen H W, Jiang L. Uni-directional transportation on peristome-mimetic surfaces for completely wetting liquids. Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2016, 55, 14988–14992.
Liu X J, Gu H C, Wang M, Du X, Gao B B, Elbaz A, Sun L D, Liao J L, Xiao P F, Gu Z Z. 3D Printing of bioinspired liquid superrepellent structures. Advanced Materials, 2018, 30, e1800103.
Li J Q, Zhou X F, Li J, Che L F, Yao J, McHale G, Chaudhury M K, Wang Z K. Topological liquid diode. Science Advances, 2017, 3, eaao3530.
Chen H W, Zhang L W, Zhang Y, Zhang P F, Zhang D Y, Jiang L. Uni-directional liquid spreading control on a bio-inspired surface from the peristome of Nepenthes alata. Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 2017, 5, 6914–6920.
Ju J, Yao X, Yang S, Wang L, Sun R Z, He Y X, Jiang L. Cactus stem inspired cone-arrayed surfaces for efficient fog collection. Advanced Functional Materials, 2014, 24, 6933–6938.
Yu C M, Cao M Y, Dong Z C, Wang J M, Li K, Jiang L. Spontaneous and directional transportation of gas bubbles on superhydrophobic cones. Advanced Functional Materials, 2016, 26, 3236–3243.
Ma H Y, Cao M Y, Zhang C H, Bei Z L, Li K, Yu C M, Jiang L. Directional and continuous transport of gas bubbles on superaerophilic geometry-gradient surfaces in aqueous environments. Advanced Functional Materials, 2018, 28, 1705091.
Zhang C H, Zhang B, Ma H Y, Li Z, Xiao X, Zhang Y H, Cui X Y, Yu C M, Cao M Y, Jiang L. Bioinspired pressure-tolerant asymmetric slippery surface for continuous self-transport of gas bubbles in aqueous environment. ACS Nano, 2018, 12, 2048–2055.
Zhu H G, Chen D Y, Li N J, Xu Q F, Li H, He J H, Lu J M. Dual-layer copper mesh for integrated oil-Water separation and water purification. Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, 2017, 200, 594–600.
Yong J L, Fang Y, Chen F, Huo J L, Yang Q, Bian H, Du G Q, Hou X. Femtosecond laser ablated durable superhydrophobic PTFE films with micro-through-holes for oil/water separation: Separating oil from water and corrosive solutions. Applied Surface Science, 2016, 389, 1148–1155.
Stogin B B, Gockowski L, Feldstein H, Claure H, Wang J, Wong T S. Free-standing liquid membranes as unusual particle separators. Science Advances, 2018, 4, eaat3276.
Li C X, Dai H Y, Gao C, Wang T, Dong Z C, Jiang L. Bioinspired inner microstructured tube controlled capillary rise. PNAS, 2018, 116, 12704–12709.
Chen H W, Zhang L W, Zhang D Y, Zhang P F, Han Z W. Bioinspired surface for surgical graspers based on the strong wet friction of tree frog toe pads. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2015, 7, 13987–13995.
Massarweh N N, Cosgriff N, Slakey D P. Electrosurgery: history, principles, and current and future uses. Journal of the American College of Surgeons, 2006, 202, 520–530.
Han Z W, Fu J, Feng X M, Niu S C, Zhang J Q, Ren L Q. Bionic anti-adhesive electrode coupled with maize leaf microstructures and TiO2 coating. RSC Advances, 2017, 7, 45287–45293.
Liu G, Zhang P F, Liu Y, Zhang D Y, Chen H W. Self-lubricanting slippery surface with wettability gradients for anti-sticking of electrosurgical scalpel. Micromachines (Basel), 2018, 9, 591.
Zhao Z H, Chen H W, Liu X L, Liu H, Zhang D Y. Development of high-efficient synthetic electric heating coating for anti-icing/de-icing. Surface and Coatings Technology, 2018, 349, 340–346.
Liu X L, Chen H W, Zhao Z H, Yan Y Y, Zhang D Y. Slippery liquid-infused porous electric heating coating for anti-icing and de-icing applications. Surface and Coatings Technology, 2019, 374, 889–896.
Hou Y P, Gao L C, Feng S L, Chen Y, Xue Y, Jiang L, Zheng Y M. Temperature-triggered directional motion of tiny water droplets on bioinspired fibers in humidity. Chemical Communications, 2013, 49, 5253–5255.
Zhu Y Y, Antao D S, Xiao R, Wang E N. Real-time manipulation with magnetically tunable structures. Advanced Materials, 2014, 26, 6442–6446.
Whitby M, Quirke N. Fluid flow in carbon nanotubes and nanopipes. Nature Nanotechnology, 2007, 2, 87–94.
Rossi M P, Ye H H, Gogotsi Y, Babu S, Ndungu P, Bradley J C. Environmental scanning electron microscopy study of water in carbon nanopipes. Nano Letters, 2004, 4, 989–993.
Hummer G, Rasaiah J C, Noworyta J P. Water conduction through the hydrophobic channel of a carbon nanotube. Nature, 2001, 414, 188–190.
Secchi E, Marbach S, Niguès A, Stein D, Siria A, Bocquet L. Massive radius-dependent flow slippage in carbon nano-tubes. Nature, 2016, 537, 210–213.
Acknowledgment
We thank the National Key R&D Program of China (No. 2019YFB1309702), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 51935001, 51725501 and 51905022). We also thank M. Li, G. Wang and Y. Lai from the National Natural Science Foundation of China for their support and helpful discussions.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made.
The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder.
To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
About this article
Cite this article
Zhang, L., Liu, G., Chen, H. et al. Bioinspired Unidirectional Liquid Transport Micro-nano Structures: A Review. J Bionic Eng 18, 1–29 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42235-021-0009-z
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42235-021-0009-z