A research team led by Professor Xue Longjian from the School of Power and Mechanical Engineering at 吃瓜网 (WHU) has made a breakthrough in directional liquid transport. Their study, titled Topological Elastic Liquid Diode, was recently published in Science Advances.
Precise control of liquid movement is essential in fields such as microfluidics, inkjet printing, and biomedicine. However, most existing technologies rely on external stimuli or complex surface treatments, limiting their adaptability and practicality. To address this, the team drew inspiration from the 3D ratchet-like structure of Araucaria leaves to develop a Topological Elastic Liquid Diode (TELD), which enables in situ, reversible control of liquid flow on hydrophilic surfaces.
Topological elastic liquid diode.
Fabricated using 3D printing and soft lithography, TELD allows directional switching of liquid flow via simple stretching or injection rate adjustments – without the need for responsive additives. The device shows strong potential for applications in logic gating, microfluidic reactors, and fog harvesting systems.
The paper was co-authored by WHU professors Xue Longjian and Zhao Yan, along with Hong Kong Polytechnic University's Wang Zuankai, with WHU PhD student Zhang Yurong as the primary author.
Link to paper:
