High performance corrosion protective DGEBA/polypyrrole composite coatings

Conducting polymers (CP) have been envisaged as nontoxic substitutes for chromates in corrosion protective coatings owing to their environmental stability, excellent corrosion resistant performances and good adhesion to metal substrate. Recent advancements in the field of corrosion protective coatings have therefore headed towards the utilization of conducting polymers as “smart corrosion inhibitors” in the formulation of eco-friendly anti-corrosive coatings. With the aim to develop a facile method for the synthesis of anti corrosive coating material having superior corrosion protective properties, the present work reports the corrosion studies of polypyrrole/DGEBA composite coatings on mild steel (MS). The coatings were characterized by physicochemical as well as physicomechanical studies while the corrosion protective performance was evaluated by chemical resistance in different corrosive media, corrosion rate and open circuit potential (OCP) measurements. The morphologies of corroded, coated, uncorroded and uncoated samples were investigated by SEM studies. The composite coatings were found to show far superior anti corrosive performance than PANI/epoxy coatings in acid, alkaline as well as saline environments.