The superhydrophilic and superoleophilic leaf surface of Ruellia devosiana (Acanthaceae): a biological model for spreading of water and oil on surfaces
Kerstin Koch A C , Inga Christina Blecher A , Gabriele König B , Stefan Kehraus B and Wilhelm Barthlott AA Nees Institut für Biodiversität der Pflanzen, Meckenheimer Allee 170, 53115 Bonn, Germany.
B Institut für Pharmazeutische Biologie, Nußallee 6, 53115 Bonn, Germany.
C Corresponding author. Email: koch@uni-bonn.de
Functional Plant Biology 36(4) 339-350 https://doi.org/10.1071/FP08295
Submitted: 18 November 2008 Accepted: 11 February 2009 Published: 1 April 2009
Abstract
Most leaves of plants are hydrophobic or even superhydrophobic. Surprisingly the leaves of the tropical herb of Ruellia devosiana Makoy ex E. Morr. Hort. (Acanthaceae) are superamphiphilic. Water droplets (10 µL) spread to a film with a contact angle of zero degree within less than 0.3 s. Such surfaces with a high affinity to water are termed superhydrophilic. Droplets of oil applied on R. devosiana leaves and replicas showed a similar spreading behaviour as water. These surfaces are superoleophilic, and in combination with their superhydrophilicity they are called superamphiphilic. Independent of the growing conditions, a reversibility of the superhydrophilicity in R. devosiana leaves was found. Additionally, on 90° tilted leaves a pressure free capillary transport of water occurs against the force of gravity. By using a low pressure environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM), the water condensation and evaporation process on the leaves has been observed. The leaf surfaces are composed of five different cell types: conical cells, glands, multicellular hairs, hair-papilla cells and longitudinal expanded, flat epidermis cells, which, in combination with the surrounding papilla cells, form channel like structures. Replication of the leaf surface structure and coating of the replicas with hydrophilic Tween 20 and a water soluble extract gained from the leaf surfaces resulted in artificial surfaces with the same fast water spreading properties as described for the leaves.
Additional keywords: biomimetic, plant surfaces, superamphiphilic, superhydrophilic, superoleophilic, water spreading, wettability.
Acknowledgements
Parts of this study were supported by the German Science Foundation (Deutsche Forschungs Gemeinschaft) project ‘Biomimetic surfaces’ (KO 2220/1–2). The authors also thank the Akademie der Wissenschaften Mainz for financial support. Special thanks goes to Professor Georg Noga for providing of the ESEM and to Knut Wichterich (Institute of Plant Sciences and Resource Conservation (INRES), University of Bonn) for performing the ESEM analysis.
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