Corrosion-resistant hybrid coatings based on graphene oxide–zirconia dioxide/epoxy system

The hybrid coatings based on graphene oxide–zirconia dioxide/epoxy (GO–ZrO2/EP) system were fabricated and applied for corrosion protection of metal substrate. First, GO–ZrO2 hybrid was synthesized through two different silane coupling agents and the morphology and structure were confirmed by Field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis. Then, GO–ZrO2 was incorporated into EP to investigate the corrosion protection of metal substrate. Investigations revealed that the corrosion protective properties were significantly enhanced by the addition of GO–ZrO2 to EP. The enhancement attributed to the sheet-like structure, uniform dispersion and exfoliation of GO–ZrO2 hybrid within EP matrix, which effectively prevented the underlying metal substrate from corrosion attack.