The Influence of Carbon Nanotubes on the Protective Properties of Polypyrrole Formed at Copper

Abstract

Protective polypyrrole films doped with dodecylbenzene sulfonate (DBS) were formed at copper, while carbon nanotubes (CNT) were incorporated within the polymer films with the DBS to give PPy-DBSCNT (polypyrrole films doped with DBS and incorporated CNT). The polymer films were deposited from a 0.05 M DBS solution at a pH of 6.0 at a thin polypyrrole film doped with tartrate, which served as a stable pre-layer. Low corrosion currents of 0.12 and 0.05 μA cm−2 were estimated using Tafel analysis for the PPy-DBS and PPy-DBSCNT films, respectively, while a significant reduction in the concentration of Cu2+ ions from the corroding copper was observed for the polymer-modified copper. The corrosion protection properties were attributed to the doping of the polymer by the large and immobile DBS anions and possibly, by the larger anionic micelles that are formed at a DBS concentration of 9.8 mM in the pyrrole-containing solution. These dopants give a negatively charged surface that repels chloride anions. The additional protective properties afforded by the CNTs appear to be related to the morphology of the CNT-modified polypyrrole coatings, while the functionalized CNTs also provide a negatively charged surface.