Potential use of graphene composites in epoxy resin as anticorrosive painting in automotive industry

Abstract

<div class="section abstract"><div class="htmlview paragraph">Steel represents more than 50% of weight in vehicles, being more susceptible to corrosion processes. Corrosion studies in these components are of great industrial and economic interest, and anticorrosive coatings with efficiency of superior protection is still a relevant area in materials research. Paintings from inorganic and organic hybrid compounds have been used to produce more effective and efficient coatings. Among polymeric coatings, epoxy resin is considered one of the most used anticorrosion coatings, mainly due its excellent protective properties. High barrier level is reached by reinforcing the coatings with inorganic fillers such heavy metal, nanoparticles, silica, and now more recently, carbon-based materials, like graphene and its derivatives. Graphene combined with additives presented in the paint composition can act as a passive physical barrier between the corrosive environment and the metal surface, restricting the diffusion of corrosive agents across the metal surface. In this work we provided a general view about the potential use of anticorrosive protective coatings based on graphene composites in epoxy resins in the automotive industry. We evaluated the state-of-the-art of some recent advances in the scientific and patent research databases in the last 10 years, as well as the existing commercial products available in the market. Finally, positive and negative points of view were observed in the use of graphene composites in coatings, such as the possibility of producing waterborne paint, which causes a reduction of potential polluting materials present in paint compositions. On the other hand, the dispersion and interactions of graphene structures along the resins are still the main challenges in processing of these composites. Despite facing major challenges, its versatility and noticeable studies results reveal the capability of graphene composite coatings to attend demand protection standards of the new car’s generation.</div></div>