Abstract: Recent development concerning underwater superoleophobic surface has been motivated by fish scales, which are rendered capable of preventing their surfaces from contamination in oil-polluted water. In this paper, for the first time, the variations in surface topography and chemical composition of crucian fish scales at different growth stages have been investigated. The water and oil contact angles, surface morphology and chemical composition of the fish scales were measured by means of contact angle measurements, scanning electron microscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, respectively. It is found that surface morphology and chemical composition both have influences on surface wettability of fish scales; fish scale at infant period seems to possess better hydrophilicity than that of fish scales at mature and senescent period. What is more, it is believed that the wettability heavily depends on the surface structures during their growth procedure, which enlightens us to design and fabricate biomimetic multifunctional underwater superoleophobic surfaces inspired by nature.

Key words: underwater superoleophobic, fish scales, ontogeny, biomimetic