| abstract |
A fluid conveying apparatus including a wall structure forming a channel for conveying fluid. The channel is bounded by an interior face of the wall structure. A rice leaf-like textured surface is formed on the interior face. The textured surface includes a plurality of micropillars projecting from the interior face and arranged in a geometry akin to rice leaf micropapillae. In some embodiments, the textured surface is a replica of a rice leaf hierarchical structure. In other embodiments, the micropillars are arranged to define a plurality of longitudinal grooves having a transverse sinusoidal pattern. The micropillars can are arranged in a substantially uniform micropattern, and have a diameter of about 2 μm, a height of about 4 μm, and a pitch distance of about 4 μm. A nanostructured coating can assist in rendering the micropillars superhydrophobic, and mimics the waxy nanobumps of a native rice leaf. |