Corrosion resistance conferred by superhydrophobic fluorinated polyacrylate–silica composite coatings on cold‐rolled steel

The superhydrophobic surface (SHS) applied for corrosion protection in this study was prepared from an organic fluorinated polyacrylate incorporated with methyltriethoxysilane (MTES)-based silsesquioxanes spheres. The SHS, with a contact angle of about 153.2 degrees, was coated onto the surface of cold-rolled steel (CRS) with spin-coating technology. The coating materials applied as anticorrosive coatings were based on a series of electrochemical corrosion-protection measurements in saline conditions. The SHS coating on CRS was found to provide superior corrosion protection to that of the hydrophobic organic coating in a series of electrochemical measurements in 3.5 wt % aqueous NaCl electrolyte. This form of coating could also provide better corrosion protection to coated CRS substrates and could serve as an effective barrier against aggressive species. (c) 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012