Recent advances in biomimetic surfaces inspired by creatures for fog harvesting

Abstract

The shortage of water resources is becoming increasingly serious, and thus has attracted worldwide attention. After years of evolution and natural selection, through interacting with the natural environment, creatures have developed a series of distinguished functions to realize optimal responses and adapt to the changes in nature. Inspired by the creatures in nature, many reports about surfaces possessing fog harvesting ability have been published recently. In this review, the recent advances in biomimetic surfaces are summarized with focus on actual fog harvesting. Next, the corresponding wetting theories and transporting theories are briefly introduced. In addition, the recent advances in fog-harvesting surfaces with emphasis on the mechanism of the enhanced water capture and water transport are systematically summarized. Furthermore, fog harvesting materials with unique ability used in specific situations are also presented. Finally, conclusions and future outlooks for the development of surfaces with fog-harvesting ability are proposed.