Synergistic effect of polyvinylpyrrolidone noncovalently modified graphene and epoxy resin in anticorrosion application.

In this article, polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) was used for the noncovalent modification on the surface of graphene. Compared with covalent modification, this method maintained the original structure of graphene layers, thereby maximizing the original properties of graphene. The π–π noncovalent bond was formed between PVP and graphene by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis, indicating that PVP successfully modified graphene. The thickness of graphene layer was measured by atomic force microscopy, which showed that the distance between graphene layers was increased by 5–6 nm, and the stability of the modified graphene in N, N -dimethylformamide was remarkably improved. The obtained composite coating by combination of the modified graphene and the epoxy resin was subjected to electrochemical impedance test to obtain the best anticorrosive effect of the coating with the graphene content of 0.3 wt%. The results showed that the addition of graphene to the epoxy resin could effectively improve the anticorrosive effect. Meanwhile, the good electrical conductivity allowed the electrons which lost from the substrate to led to air or saline rapidly, thereby reducing the combination of iron ions with oxygen and the generation of corrosion products (iron oxides). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]