Bioinspired Superhydrophobic All‐In‐One Coating for Adaptive Thermoregulation

Abstract

AbstractThe development of scalable and passive coatings that can adapt to seasonal temperature changes while maintaining superhydrophobic self‐cleaning functions is crucial for their practical applications. However, the incorporation of passive cooling and heating functions with conflicting optical properties in a superhydrophobic coating is still challenging. Herein, an all‐in‐one coating inspired by the hierarchical structure of a lotus leaf that combines surface wettability, optical structure, and temperature self‐adaptation is obtained through a simple one‐step phase separation process. This coating exhibits an asymmetrical gradient structure with surface‐embedded hydrophobic SiO2 particles and subsurface thermochromic microcapsules within vertically distributed hierarchical porous structures. Moreover, the coating imparts superhydrophobicity, high infrared emission, and thermo‐switchable sunlight reflectivity, enabling autonomous transitions between radiative cooling and solar warming. The all‐in‐one coating prevents contamination and over‐cooling caused by traditional radiative cooling materials, opening up new prospects for the large‐scale manufacturing of intelligent thermoregulatory coatings.