Bioinspired wettability boundary stabilizes water sloshing

Liquid sloshing leads to spillage, waste, and operational inefficiency across multiple industries. Although strategies such as baffle designs and foam inserts exist, they often fall short in real-world dynamic conditions. Inspired by liquid-stabilizing mechanisms of pitcher plants and impact-dampening notches of water lilies, we introduce a dual-biomimetic cup design that enhances liquid stabilization using three-dimensional printing to construct structures and superhydrophobic coating for wettability boundary modification. Our system integrates patterned hydrophilic-superhydrophobic boundaries with strategically placed superhydrophobic notches, synergistically stabilizing water surfaces and dissipating oscillatory energy. Comprehensive tests—including centrifugal, vibrational, and real-world transport scenarios—demonstrated a spill rate of approaching 0%, as well as robust resistance to water sloshing. Notably, a four-tier tower of dual-biomimetic cups mounted on a car retained nearly 100% of their liquid after traversing 50 alternating speed bumps, whereas conventional cups lost more than 40%. Our bioinspired method demonstrates a scalable and versatile approach that bridges natural wetting strategies with practical engineering applications in liquid transport and containment.