Novel epoxy/metal phthalocyanines nanocomposite coatings for corrosion protection of carbon steel

In this study, epoxy/metal phthalocyanines nanocomposites (NiPc/Epoxy, CuPc/Epoxy, and ZnPc/Epoxy) are employed to protect carbon steel corrosion in 3.5% NaCl solution. The corrosion performances of the nanocomposites coatings were evaluated by using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), open circuit potential (OCP) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) measurements. The mechanical property of the coating system was investigated using nanoindentation technique. The results indicated that the incorporation of metal phthalocyanines pigments into epoxy resin coating significantly enhances the corrosion resistance as well as the hardness of epoxy coatings. Metal phthalocyanines pigments are able to cure the defect in epoxy resin and prevent the diffusion of corrosive electrolyte to carbon steel substrate. It was found that NiPc/Epoxy nanocomposite gave the best protection performance than others.