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Surfaces
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Bio-Inspired Surfaces
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Bio-Inspired Surfaces

A special issue of Surfaces (ISSN 2571-9637).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 March 2025 | Viewed by 568

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Jinde Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Plastics Engineering Department, University of Massachusetts Lowell, Lowell, MA 01854, USA
Interests: bio-inspired surfaces; special wetting behavior; superhydrophobicity; superomnipobicity; superhydrophilicity; polymeric film; polymer nanocomposites fabrication; CNTs/polyolefin; carbon blacks/polyolefin; metal power/polyolefin; graphite/polyolefin; textile-based flexible electronics

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Bio-inspired surfaces are advanced materials and structures designed by mimicking natural phenomena. Drawing inspiration from biological systems, such as the self-cleaning property of lotus leaves, the water-repellent surface of shark skin, or the adhesive ability of gecko feet, researchers aim to create surfaces with enhanced functionalities. These surfaces are crucial for a variety of applications, including water management, energy efficiency, and healthcare. By emulating nature’s optimized designs, bio-inspired surfaces contribute to advancements in materials science, offering sustainable, energy-efficient, and environmentally friendly solutions to modern challenges.

The aim of this Special Issue on “Bio-Inspired Surfaces” is to advance the understanding and development of surface technologies inspired by nature’s design principles. By exploring the intersection of biology, materials science, and engineering, this Special Issue seeks to highlight cutting-edge research that leverages natural systems to create innovative surfaces with unique functionalities.

The key goals of this Special Issue include:

  • Showcasing Breakthrough Research: Highlighting recent breakthroughs in the development of bio-inspired surfaces, focusing on how nature-inspired designs can lead to improved surface properties such as self-cleaning, anti-fouling, hydrophobicity, and adhesion.
  • Promoting Cross-Disciplinary Collaboration: Encouraging collaboration between researchers from various disciplines, including biology, physics, chemistry, materials science, and engineering, to foster new ideas and solutions in the creation of bio-inspired surfaces.
  • Addressing Practical Applications: Exploring real-world applications of bio-inspired surfaces in areas such as healthcare, energy, water management, environmental protection, and manufacturing, demonstrating their potential impact on industry and society.
  • Sustainability and Innovation: Highlighting research that focuses on the development of eco-friendly and sustainable materials and processes through bio-inspired design, addressing the growing need for environmentally responsible technologies.
  • Future Directions: Providing a platform for discussing emerging trends, challenges, and future directions in the field of bio-inspired surfaces, with an emphasis on translating scientific discoveries into practical, scalable applications.

This Special Issue aims to contribute to the growing body of knowledge on bio-inspired surfaces and inspire future innovations that draw from nature to solve complex technological challenges.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome and research areas may include, but are not limited to:

  • Surface Engineering and Fabrication Techniques
    • Novel fabrication methods for bio-inspired surfaces;
    • Advanced materials and nanostructures inspired by nature.
  • Functional Surfaces
    • Self-cleaning and anti-fouling surfaces;
    • Superhydrophobic and superhydrophilic surfaces;
    • Antibacterial and antiviral surfaces;
    • Adhesive and anti-adhesive surfaces inspired by biological models.
  • Natural Inspiration and Design Principles
    • Biomimetic surfaces inspired by plant structures;
    • Animal-inspired surfaces (e.g., gecko feet, shark skin, butterfly wings);
    • Structural color and optical properties in bio-inspired surfaces.
  • Applications in Industry and Technology
    • Bio-inspired surfaces for medical devices and implants;
    • Energy applications (e.g., bio-inspired solar panels, energy efficient coatings);
    • Water management and desalination technologies;
    • Environmental protection and pollution control.
  • Sustainability and Environmental Impact
    • Eco-friendly and sustainable bio-inspired materials;
    • Life cycle analysis and environmental benefits of bio-inspired surface technologies.
  • Computational and Theoretical Studies
    • Simulation and modeling of bio-inspired surface behaviors;
    • Theoretical frameworks for understanding bio-inspired surface phenomena.
  • Emerging Trends and Future Directions
    • Smart and responsive surfaces (e.g., tunable wettability, stimuli-responsive materials);
    • Advances in multi-functional surfaces combining multiple bio-inspired properties;
    • Challenges and opportunities in scaling bio-inspired technologies for industrial use.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Jinde Zhang
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Surfaces is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • bio-inspired surface science and engineering
  • surface wetting
  • superhydrophobic
  • omniphobic
  • bio-adhesion
  • smart surfaces
  • anti-fouling coatings
  • sustainable materials

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

21 pages, 3995 KiB  
Article
Improvement in Biological Performance of Poly(Lactic Acid)-Based Materials via Single-Point Surface Modification with Glycopolymer
by Viktor Korzhikov-Vlakh, Ekaterina Sinitsyna, Kirill Arkhipov, Mariia Levit, Evgenia Korzhikova-Vlakh and Tatiana Tennikova
Surfaces 2024, 7(4), 1008-1028; https://doi.org/10.3390/surfaces7040067 - 1 Dec 2024
Viewed by 382
Abstract
As a promising polymer for the production of biomaterials and drug delivery systems, poly(lactic acid) (PLA) is characterized by its relative hydrophobicity, as well as its chemical and biological inertness. Here, we aimed to improve the biological properties of PLA-based materials via the [...] Read more.
As a promising polymer for the production of biomaterials and drug delivery systems, poly(lactic acid) (PLA) is characterized by its relative hydrophobicity, as well as its chemical and biological inertness. Here, we aimed to improve the biological properties of PLA-based materials via the covalent attachment of a hydrophilic biocompatible glycopolymer, namely poly(2-deoxy-N-methacrylamido-D-glucose) (PMAG) on their surface. PMAG is a water-soluble polymer that contains glucose units in its side chains, which are responsible for good biocompatibility and the ability to attach bioactive molecules. In the developed protocol, PMAG was synthesized by controlled radical polymerization in the presence of a reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) agent, followed by the conversion of glycopolymer terminal dithiobenzoate functionality into a primary amino group (PMAG-NH2). PLA-based films served as model aliphatic polyester materials for developing the surface biofunctionalization protocol. According to that, PMAG-NH2 covalent immobilization was carried out after alkali treatment, allowing the generation of the surface-located carboxyl groups and their activation. The developed modification method provided a one-point attachment of hydrophilic PMAG to the hydrophobic PLA surface. PMAG samples, which differed by the degree of polymerization, and the variation of polymer concentration in the reaction medium were applied to investigate the modification efficacy and grafting density. The developed single-point polymer grafting approach provided the efficient functionalization with a grafting density in the range of 5–23 nmol/cm2. The neat and modified polymer films were characterized by a number of methods, namely atomic force microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, ellipsometry, and contact angle measurements. In addition, an ArgGlyAsp-containing peptide (RGD peptide) was conjugated to the PMAG macromolecules grafted on the surface of PLA films. It was shown that both surface modification with PMAG and with PMAG-RGD peptide enhanced the adhesion and growth of mesenchymal stem cells as compared to a neat PLA surface. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bio-Inspired Surfaces)
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