Alternatives to insecticides: bio-inspired coatings and sprays to tackle insect pests

Abstract

Insect pests cause considerable damage worldwide to plants, buildings and human health. This review explores how controlling insect adhesion to coatings might mitigate these problems. We summarise the current knowledge of the mechanisms of insect adhesion on natural and synthetic surfaces and natural examples of non-adhesive and slippery surfaces. Biomimetic, multi-scaled rough and particle-transferring surfaces provide an efficient method to reduce adhesion of crawling insects.