Superhydrophobic Surface Fabricated from Fatty Acid-Modified Precipitated Calcium Carbonate

A very low-cost and simple method for fabricating a superhydrophobic surface with commercially available precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC) and fatty acid is reported in this research article. PCC particles were chemically modified from hydrophilic to hydrophobic in water with fatty acid. The thin film formed by these hydrophobic PCCs shows superhydrophobic and self-cleaning properties. The contact angle hysteresis of modified PCC film was investigated. A sliding angle of 1.75° could be obtained with oleic acid-modified PCC film at an oleic acid concentration of 2.52 wt %. Comparing with oleic acid, the PCC film modified by stearic acid has a higher sliding angle (∼10°).