Surface Thermodynamics

Our primary focus at the Surface Thermodynamics Lab is studying the fundamentals of surface thermodynamics, and wetting behavior. Interactions between liquids and solids are typically characterized by the contact angle that a liquid drop makes on the solid surface. We change the surface wetting by changing the surface chemistry and roughness through mimicking the hierarchical surface morphology of the lotus leaf.

We can obtain the following desirable surfaces, pending on the applications: Low friction surfaces with application in airfoils, hydrofoils, and pump blades; Anti-icing with application in satellite dishes, and airplane wings; Anti-corrosion with application in Oil and gas industry, metal structures, and ships.