Preparation and application of biodegradable and superhydrophobic polylactic acid/carnauba wax coating

A biodegradable superhydrophobic polylactic acid-carnauba wax (PLA/CW) coating was fabricated via a simple spray-coating method. The PLA/CW coating displayed excellent superhydrophobicity, low contact angle hysteresis (waster contact angle at 160.4° and water sliding angle at only 6°) and superior heat resistance, due to the low surface energy of CW and high melting point of PLA. The obtained coating also showed capability in application of self-cleaning, aqueous-liquid-residues reduction and oil-water separation. Compared with the conventional superhydrophobic materials involving complicated methods and hardly-degradable materials, PLA/CW coating is fully biodegradable with simple and low-cost fabrication method. We believe that such a PLA/CW coating opens up opportunities for efficient fabrication of biodegradable superhydrophobic coating and exhibits promising potential in commercial use.