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The current standards for evaluating corrosion during salt spray tests rely on the visual analysis of the specimens, and this may be a limitation when higher resolution quantitative outputs are desired. In this work, computational image analysis was used to measure the area affected by corrosion during salt spray tests with aluminum alloy, copper, carbon steel and galvanized steel plates. The software ImageJ was used to select and measure the corroded areas differentiating the corrosion products from the metals uncorroded surfaces according to their different colors. With ten measurements for each selected exposure time, a 95% confidence interval was calculated for each material and time of exposure, giving an indication of the precision of the estimated corroded area. These data were compared with a visual inspection carried out by an experienced technician. The results indicate that computational image analysis may be a powerful tool to obtain higher resolution in the results interpretation in comparison with the standard visual analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of intrinsically conductive polymers, such as polyaniline (PAni), has been presented as an option for coatings or component of organic coatings with anticorrosive properties due to their electrochemical properties. From this, in this study was produced a binder composed by mixture of PAni base emeraldine (BE) to a plasticizer electrochemically inert plasticiser. The blend was added to a commercial acrylic paint (CAP), for the production of an acrylic intelligent paint (AIP) with anticorrosion properties, acting in anodic protection of carbon steel. The paint produced was characterized by physical–chemical methods of thickness measurement, scanning electron microscopy and RAMAN spectroscopy, which presented results indicating that the PAni BE binder is contained in the CAP, in resin form, in addition to preserve the main functions and desirable electrochemical characteristics of PAni for application as an anticorrosive coating. The electrochemical tests of cyclic voltammetry, open circuit potential and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy demonstrated that AIP acts to protect against corrosion of carbon steel via anodic protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To increase the corrosion resistance of an iron substrate, conducting polymers were electrochemically synthesised from a solution containing 1,5-diaminonaphthalene and aniline. MIRFTIRS, AFM and electrochemical characterisation indicated the formation of a two layers composite polymer. The first layer, of poly(1,5-diaminonaphthalene) was compact, homogeneous, thin and adherent to the substrate and the top layer, of polyaniline, was thick and fibrous. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, the use of ZrO2 nanocoating in aluminum substrates, generated by controlled electrochemical chronoamperometry in hexafluorozirconic acid solutions (H2ZrF6·5H2O), resulted in a lower porous films than that obtained by chemical conversion coating. After the application of an epoxy coating, long-term cyclic immersion corrosion tests and scratch tests proved the superior protection of the dual system and the coating lifespan, thanks to the enhanced adhesion of ZrO2 intermediate layer and the organic coating. As zirconium-based electrolytes are considered more friendly bath if compared to that of other conversion coating processes, like chromating, phosphating or anodizing processes, the study opens new insights to the protection of structural metals in sectors such as automotive, naval and aerospace industries. The main advantages are the employment of lightweight intermediate pre-treatment (nanoscale), compared to conventional ones (microscale), and reduction of waste slurry (electrolyte bath free of additives). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, the influence of the substrate in the formation of zirconium oxide monolayer, from an aqueous hexafluorozirconic acid solution, by chemical conversion and by electro-assisted deposition, has been approached. The nanoscale dimensions of the ZrO2 film is affected by the substrate nature and roughness. This study evidenced that the mechanism of Zr-EAD is dependent on the potential applied and on the substrate composition, whereas conversion coating is uniquely dependent on the adsorption reaction time. The zirconium oxide based nanofilms were more homogenous in AA2024 substrates if compared to pure Al grade (AA1100). It was justified by the high content of Cu alloying element present in the grain boundaries of the latter. Such intermetallic active sites favor the obtaining of ZrO2 films, as demonstrated by XPS and AFM results. From a mechanistic point of view, the electrochemical reactions take place simultaneously with the conventional chemical conversion process driven by ions diffusion. Such findings will bring new perspectives for the generation of controlled oxide coatings in modified electrodes used, as for example, in the construction of battery cells; in automotive and in aerospace industries, to replace micrometric layers of zinc phosphate by light-weight zirconium oxide nanometric ones. This study is particularly addressed for the reduction of industrial waste by applying green bath solutions without the need of auxiliary compounds and using lightweight ceramic materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]