Water Spider‐Inspired Nanofiber Coating with Sustainable Scale Repellency via Air‐Replenishing Strategy

Abstract To survive underwater even in severely hypoxic water for a long period, the water spider has to periodically collect and replenish air into the diving bell. Inspired by this natural air‐replenishing strategy, a water spider‐inspired nanofiber (WSN) coating with underwater superaerophilicity displaying excellent and sustainable scalephobic capability is prepared. Air film on the WSN coating can be well‐kept and further employed as the barrier layer for scale repellence. Significantly, scalephobic capability of the WSN coating mainly originates from two aspects: inhibiting interfacial nucleation and reducing interfacial adhesion of scale. Compared with previous studies, this WSN coating achieves excellent and sustainable scale repellence (≈ 98% reduction in scale deposition) even after a one‐month dynamic scaling test. Thus, this air‐replenishing strategy may raise a new avenue for advanced long‐term scalephobic materials.