Physics of pre-wetted, lubricated and impregnated surfaces: a review

Wetting phenomena occurring on pre-wetted flat and rough solid surfaces are reviewed. The wetting of lubricated flat surfaces is strongly correlated with the tribological properties of a solid/lubricant pair. The phenomena taking place on micro- and nano-rough oil-impregnated surfaces have attracted the attention of the scientific community due to their numerous promising applications as omniphobic, self-healing, anti-icing and anti-bacterial interfaces. On the other hand, these phenomena are rich in their physical content. The effects observed on natural and artificial, bioinspired oil-impregnated surfaces are discussed, including electrowetting of oil-impregnated surfaces, enabling low-voltage reversible control of the droplet shape. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Bioinspired materials and surfaces for green science and technology’.