Controlled liquid/solid mobility using external fields on lubricant-impregnated surfaces
AssigneeMassachusetts Institute of Technology
InventorsKarim Samir Khalil, Kripa K. Varanasi, Seyed Reza Mahmoudi
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Abstract
A method for precise control of movement of a motive phase on a lubricant-impregnated surface includes providing a lubricant-impregnated surface, introducing the motive phase onto the lubricant-impregnated surface, and exposing the droplets to an electric and/or magnetic field to induce controlled movement of the droplets on the surface. The lubricant-impregnated surface includes a matrix of solid features spaced sufficiently close to stably contain the impregnating lubricant therebetween or therewithin. The motive phase is immiscible or scarcely miscible with the impregnating lubricant.
Claims26
A method for controlling movement of a motive phase on a liquid-impregnated surface, the method comprising:
- providing a liquid-impregnated surface, said surface comprising an impregnating liquid and a matrix of solid features spaced sufficiently close to contain the impregnating liquid therebetween or therewithin;
- introducing the motive phase onto the surface wherein introducing the motive phase onto the surface comprises allowing the motive phase to form on the surface, the motive phase comprising a phase that is immiscible with the impregnating liquid;
- and
- exposing the motive phase to an electric field and/or a magnetic field to induce controlled movement of the motive phase on the surface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.