The influence of xylene content on the dispersion of graphene in aromatic petroleum resin by solution mixing.

[Display omitted] • Graphene disperses well in aromatic petroleum resin by solution mixing. • Dispersibility of graphene in aromatic resin improved with xylene content decreased. • Graphene slows down the swelling ratio of aromatic resin immersed in water. • Graphene in aromatic petroleum resin can effectively shield corrosion factors. Graphene (Gr) uniformly dispersed aromatic petroleum resin (APR) coatings were prepared using exfoliated Gr and APR as raw materials by solution mixing method. Graphene was first mixed with the xylene solution and treated by ultrasonication. Then the APR was added to the mixture solution, after heating and stirring to remove the excess xylene solvent, the APR solution with uniform dispersion of graphene could be obtained. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to test the thickness variation of the multilayer graphene layers before and after xylene adsorption. The results showed that the xylene which increased the thickness of the multilayer graphene was interspersed between the graphene layers. Raman spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) characterized that graphene obtained a good dispersion of Gr in APR. The electrochemical characteristics of graphene-modified APR coatings were tested by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and the results showed that the xylene content influenced the dispersion of graphene and flowability of the APR solution. The Gr/APR coatings with 45 wt% xylene exhibited the best corrosion protection performance. The impedance modulus of the coating in the low-frequency region after being immersed in 3.5 wt% sodium chloride solution for 100 days was greater than 109Ω·cm2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]