Synergistic enhancement of polyvinylpyrrolidone‐modified TiO2 and graphene oxide on the corrosion resistance of waterborne epoxy

Abstract Waterborne epoxy (WEP) resins have garnered significant interest due to their potential application as anticorrosion coatings for steel materials. However, it has been reported that defects in the cured coatings generated during the curing process lead to the level of anticorrosion not meeting the expected effects. In this study, TiO 2 and GO were selected to be modified by polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) to obtain PT and PG, and used to improve the anticorrosion performance of WEP. The obtained PT and PG were characterized using Fourier transform infrared, Raman, and x‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The morphology of PT and PG before and after modification was observed using scanning electron microscopy, and the differences were described. The analysis results of laser confocal scanning microscopy and water contact angle (WCA) indicate that there are differences in surface roughness and WCA of the WEP coatings with or without PT and PG. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy was used to evaluate the anticorrosion performance of the coatings. The results showed that WEP coatings containing PT and PG exhibited better anticorrosion performance. The synergistic enhancement of PT and PG on the anticorrosion performance was proposed, which can be attributed to the comprehensive effect of the hydrophobicity of the coating surface and the barrier effect of PT and PG within the coatings.