SUPERWETTABILITY-BASED CHEMICAL PROCESSES

The special wettability of surfaces has attracted intensive research interests and leads to a rapidly developing field collectively known as the “superwettability” system. As a new member of this system, superwettability-based chemical processes advance the applications of superwettability from single surface functions to a broader space. This review briefly introduces the latest developments in this field, including superwettability-based miniature reactors, highly effective catalytic electrodes, gaseous reactant channels and solid/liquid/gas triphase edge-growth. The reaction types cover electrochemical reaction, polymerization, crystal precipitation and catalytic process. We believe there are abundant unimaginable possibilities along with challenges in this newly emerging promising field. We hope this review will inspire researchers with different backgrounds to use superwettability concept in their reaction systems flexibly and provide a new exploitation for the superwettability system.

Enhanced catalytic reaction at an air–liquid–solid triphase interface

Gaseous reactant involved liquid–solid diphase interface reactions can be significantly enhanced using rationally designed and constructed air–liquid–solid triphase systems.