Laboratory filter paper from superhydrophobic to quasi-superamphiphobicity: facile fabrication, simplified patterning and smart application

Superamphiphobic surfaces generally need a specific combination of low surface energy and re-entrant surface structure. Herein, we have created a hexane suspension of trichloro(1H,1H,2H,2H-tridecafluoro-n-octyl) silane, tetraethyl orthosilicate, silicon dioxide and titanium dioxide nanoparticles and modify a series of filter papers by one-step immersion in 10 min. Superhydrophobic and quasi-superoleophobic properties are obtained for the optimal filter papers, which repel both of polar and non-polar liquids such as water, glycerol, 1,4-butanediol, soybean oil and 1-octadecene with the contact angles of 168°, 158°, 154°, 145° and 121°, respectively. More importantly, the respective contribution of each component to the superhydrophobic and oleophobical property is explicated through a series of comparative experiments based on the optimal suspension prescription. The wettability transformation from quasi-superamphiphobicity to superhydrophilicity after UV irradiation is evaluated and illustrated. What’s more, the patterned paper is successfully used for the colorimetric detection of glucose using a simple paper-based analytical device. A linear correlation between gray intensity (GI) and glucose concentration (C), GI = − 10.7C + 161.8 is achieved with a correlation coefficient of 0.991, indicating the potential for semi-quantitative analysis of real sample in the field.