MXene sheets, as new 2D nanomaterials, have been used in many advanced applications due to their superior thin-layered architecture, as well as their capability to be employed as novel nanocontainers for advanced applications. In this research, intercalated Ti 3 C 2 MXene sheets were synthesized through an etching method, and then they were modified with 3aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES). Cerium cations (Ce 3+ ) as an eco-friendly corrosion inhibitor were encapsulated within Ti 3 C 2 MXene sheets to fabricate novel self-healing epoxy nanocomposite coatings. The corrosion protection performance (CPP) of Ce 3+ -doped Ti 3 C 2 MXene nanosheets (Ti 3 C 2 MXene-Ce 3+ ) in a 3.5 wt % sodium chloride (NaCl) solution was studied on bare mild steel substrates using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and potentiodynamic polarization measurements. The self-healing CPP of epoxy coatings loaded with 1 wt % undoped and doped Ti 3 C 2 MXene was evaluated using EIS, salt spray, and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) techniques. The introduction of Ti 3 C 2 MXene-Ce 3+ into the corrosive solution and artificially scribed epoxy coating enhanced the total impedance from 717 to 6596 Ω cm 2 and 8876 to 32092 Ω cm 2 , respectively, after 24 h of immersion compared to the control samples.

In this study, corrosion protection of epoxy coating containing surface modified nano-zirconia was evaluated and compared to that containing unmodified nano-zirconia.

In this work, we synthesized carbon hollow spheres (CHSs) using the silica templating method, encapsulated 2-mercaptobenzimidazole (MBI) inhibitor in the CHSs and evaluated their corrosion inhibition performance upon exposure of mild steel to a saline solution containing the released inhibitor. The effects of silica template surface modification on the CHS structure was evaluated, while the structure and morphology of the synthesized CHS was analyzed using field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectroscopy. Furthermore, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy mapping (EDS-mapping) and UV-vis were employed to evaluate the MBI release from carbon capsules at different pH values. Corrosion protection performance of the doped CHS was evaluated using potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) techniques. The results showed tunability of the shell structure between an amorphous carbon and graphene structure using surface modification of the silica templates. Moreover, the MBI release from the CHSs showed to be pH-dependent allowing smart protection of mild steel when exposed to corrosive conditions.

The effects of different nano-SiO2 contents on the rheological properties of poly­(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) solution and mechanical, thermal, structural, and piezoelectric properties of composite nanofibers were investigated. Results showed an increase in fiber diameter (∼125 to 350 nm) and ∼450% increase in tensile strength as the content of nano-SiO2 particles increased. The degree of crystallinity decreased by 19% as the nano-SiO2 content increased by 2% (w/w). Further investigation demonstrated that silica could significantly improve the piezoelectric properties of PVDF nanofibers as the output voltage showed an increase in the presence of silica attributed to change in the crystalline structure of PVDF.

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Carbon nanocapsules doped separately with epoxy and polyamine were used to fabricate an epoxy nanocomposite coating. Carbon nanospheres with dual-encapsulated epoxy/ polyamine were dispersed uniformly in the epoxy resin at concentrations of 2, 5, and 10 wt %. The mechanical properties of the nanocomposites were studied by tensile testing and scratch hardness measurements. Furthermore, nanocomposites were applied on mild steel substrates, and their corrosion protection and barrier performance were evaluated using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Adhesion loss measurements of coatings after 240 h exposure to 3.5 wt % NaCl solution were performed by pull-off adhesion testing. Also, the buried steel/ polymer interface was studied in situ using attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy in the Kretschmann geometry. The results showed that both mechanical and corrosion protection properties of the prepared nanocomposites are enhanced as compared to the baseline epoxy coating and improved with the concentration of doped carbon nanocapsules. Maximum mechanical and corrosion protection properties were achieved in the case of 10 wt % doped carbon nanocapsules as a result of active intermolecular interactions between the epoxy and polyamine chains of the coating matrix and amine groups grafted on the surface of carbon capsules.