Meeting Abstract
The number of studies investigating the remarkable properties of gecko adhesive toe pads has been steadily increasing over the past few decades, particularly after the discovery that van der Waals intermolecular forces are the primary driver of gecko adhesion. The gecko adhesive system is highly multifunctional (e.g. self-cleaning, anti-wetting, reusable, etc.), in ways that synthetic versions still do not mimic. Here we briefly discuss results from two studies investigating the ability of gecko toe pads to recover adhesion after fouling with water or dirt (i.e. self-drying or self-cleaning). While the self-drying and self-cleaning ability of gecko toe pads have been demonstrated elsewhere, we investigated the effect of digital hyperextension of gecko toes on self-drying, and the influence of toe pad surface chemistry on self-cleaning. Digital hyperextension was determined to have no significant effect on the extent of self-drying, suggesting that self-drying continues to occur regardless of toe pad peeling mechanism. We also found no significant effect of toe pad surface chemistry on the rate or the extent of self-cleaning, indicating that self-cleaning is not directly dependent on toe pad chemistry. Clearly, the basis of the recovery ability of gecko toe pads will require more study in order to incorporate such capability into gecko-inspired synthetic adhesives.
