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Rotating Soft Macrogrooved Interfaces for Programmable Transport and Rebound-Driven Sorting
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DOI：10.1002/adfm.202525997.png)
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Abstract
En 中文
Groove-guided liquid transport on biological surfaces demonstrates how structural patterns regulate droplet motion. Inspired by this principle, a rotating soft annular macrogrooved substrate is designed. The coupling of substrate compliance and rotation-induced shear produces a unique rebound regime, where droplets undergo a single and low-amplitude bounce that is absent on both rigid and non-rotating substrates. A combined theoretical and experimental analysis establishes the upper and lower limits of this regime. Remarkably, the contact time exhibits a non-monotonic dependence on the rotational capillary number, with up to a 25% reduction at intermediate values. Building on this controllable rebound and transport, a multifunctional droplet manipulation platform is demonstrated. First, high-fidelity directional transport with millimeter-scale precision validates the platform's accuracy. Second, a radial distribution system enables rapid modulation of solution concentrations through spatial deposition. Third, label-free droplet sorting is realized across a broad range of viscosities and sizes with minimal mass loss for highly viscous liquids. As a proof-of-concept for real-world processing, bovine milk droplets with different fat contents are separated, revealing sensitivity to subtle compositional differences. Finally, this tunable interface integrating transport and sorting in a single system is realized, enabling quantitative property-based droplets analysis and advancing next-generation droplet manipulation technologies.
Keywords:
directional transport
droplet rebound
droplet sorting
macrogroove
rotation
soft substrate
Journal
IF:
19
Papers:
3.4W
Citations:
32.1W
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