One strategy for minimising corrosive attack on carbon steel involves the application of hybrid coatings rich in rare earths, on the basis of their low toxicity and environmental sustainability. Tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) and 3-glycidoxypropyl-trimethoxysilane (GPTMS) were each used here as precursors, together with various quantities of colloidal silica suspension, to improve barrier properties of the coatings. Ce(NO3)(3)center dot 6H(2)O was added as a source of Ce(III) for further inhibition of corrosion. The corrosion resistance of each kind of sample was evaluated using potentiodynamic polarisation measurements and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) in 0.35 wt.% NaCI solution. The electrochemical behaviour at various immersion times was modelled by equivalent circuits to demonstrate the effect of silica nanoparticle loading on corrosion. Additional testing was performed under harsh conditions of salt spray chamber. The microstructure and composition of sol-gel coatings were characterised by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM/EDS), focused-ion beam SEM/EDS analysis, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and confocal microscopy. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Postprint (published version

Please cite this article as: Ianina Santana, Andrés Pepe, Wido Schreiner, Sergio Pellice, Silvia Ceré, Hybrid sol-gel coatings containing clay nanoparticles for corrosion protection of mild steel, Electrochimica Acta http://dx. Highlights Barrier properties of thin sol-gel coatings were improved with clay nanoparticles.  Self-healing effect was achieved with addition of Ce(III) ions in sol-gel films.  Clay nanoparticles and the cerium salt enhance corrosion protection of the mild steel. AbstractThe development of a new environment-friendly anticorrosive coating for mild steel substrate is afforded in this work. The combined use of cerium, as a self-healing agent, and clay nanoparticles, as improvers of the barrier properties, was considered to the development of new anticorrosive sol-gel coatings. Nanostructured hybrid films were synthesized by the sol-