Corrosion resistance and self-cleaning behaviour of Ni/a-C:H superhydrophobic films

Superhydrophobic nickel-incorporated carbon-based (Ni/a-C:H) nanocomposite films were prepared successfully on Si substrate via the one-step electrochemical deposition method using methanol as the carbon source and nickel (II) acetylacetonate as the dopant under high voltage, atmospheric pressure and low temperature. Surprisingly, this one-step electrochemical deposited Ni/a-C:H nanocomposite films could achieve superhydrophobic surface. Results showed that without any further modifications by low surface energy materials, the water contact angle of 154.21 degrees and sliding angle of 7.96 degrees were obtained, which attribute to the irregular petaloid structures. In addition, the corrosion resistance tests demonstrated the Ni/a-C:H films deposited at a Ni content of 0.08mg/ml had excellent corrosion resistance. And the self-cleaning test revealed that the Ni/a-C:H films surface had excellent self-cleaning properties, which indicated this kind of film might have a promising application in the field of drag reduction and self-cleaning.