Bioinspired Multiscale Wet Adhesive Surfaces: Structures and Controlled Adhesion

Abstract In nature, many organisms are able to accommodate a complex living environment by developing biological wet adhesive surfaces with unique functions such as fixation and predation. Significantly, most of these outstanding functions originate from the specialized micro/nanostructures and/or chemical components of these natural organisms. To design artificial surfaces with remarkable wet adhesive properties, the underlying mechanisms of the fascinating adhesion phenomena are further explored and summarized to provide continuous inspiration. Herein, a systematic overview of biological wet adhesive surfaces and the corresponding artificial counterparts from the perspective of surface micro/nanostructures is provided. First, the research progress of the typical biological wet adhesive surfaces such as the octopus, tree frogs, and mayfly larvae is introduced. Then, the fundamental models of surface adhesion in natural organisms and the commonly used instruments for measuring adhesion force are discussed. Later, the corresponding artificial wet adhesive surfaces inspired by these representative organisms are highlighted. After that, the typical methods for fabricating these surfaces are briefly introduced. Finally, future challenges and opportunities to develop bioinspired multiscaled wet adhesive surfaces with controlled adhesion are presented.