Geopolymer coating modified with reduced graphene oxide for improving steel corrosion resistance

Among the different existing techniques, the surface coating on steel provides an economical means to address the corrosion issue. In this study, a geopolymer anti-corrosion coating modified with in-situ reduced graphene oxide (RGO) was developed, and its physicochemical and electrochemical properties were investigated. Four different graphene oxide (GO) contents (i.e., 0.05%, 0.1%, 0.5% and 1% of the binder by weight) were studied. The GO content in the coating was optimized based on its corrosion protection ability, and the performance of GO modified geopolymer coated steel was compared to that of bare steel, cement coated steel and blank geopolymer coated steel when immersed in a 3.5% NaCl solution. It was observed that using a GO content of 0.1% can increase the corrosion resistance of geopolymer-coated steel by more than two orders of magnitude compared to bare carbon steel. Additionally, the physiochemical properties of different coatings were investigated, and the corrosion protection mechanism with RGO modification has been further elaborated.

Automated summary

A geopolymer anti-corrosion coating modified with in-situ reduced graphene oxide (RGO) was developed in this study, and its corrosion resistance and physicochemical properties were investigated. By optimizing the graphene oxide (GO) content, the corrosion resistance of geopolymer-coated steel was significantly improved. The study also explored the corrosion protection mechanism with RGO modification.