Enhanced durability and self-healing properties of palygorskite-based superhydrophobic coatings

Recently, constructing excellent superhydrophobic coatings has received increasing attention, and various superhydrophobic coatings have been developed. However, their mechanical and environmental durability still face challenges. In this paper, a kind of durable and self-healing superhydrophobic coating that was composed of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), Polyfluo-150Wax (PFW), and palygorskite (PAL) was fabricated using a simple and low-cost method. Modified palygorskite (MPAL) was obtained firstly to construct the necessary micro/nano structure of superhydrophobic coatings. PDMS made the coatings have low surface energy and good durability. Moreover, the superhydrophobicity of the as-prepared coatings suffered no change after they were exposed to UV light for dozens of hours. Although the coatings might lose superhydrophobicity in some extreme corrosive liquids, their character was rapidly restored after a thermal treatment because of the presence of PFW. Furthermore, the coating had an incredible structural self-healing ability. The scratches on the surface of the coating could be cured at high temperatures. Such powerful functions make the as-proposed superhydrophobic coating have promising applications in industry and daily life. Also, this work may promote the high-value use of MAPL.