Strategies
for corrosion protection are required to prolong the
life span of metallic structures used by the construction, aerospace,
and transport industries. Currently, there are no coatings that can
provide at the same time information about the corrosion status of
the coated metal and protect the metal against corrosive species and
mechanical damage. Herein, triple-functional microcarriers with functions
of corrosion sensing, self-healing, and corrosion inhibition are produced
and embedded in coatings to prolong the lifetime of metals and enhance
the anticorrosion performance of coatings. The microcarriers are prepared
by creating Pickering droplets loaded with a corrosion inhibitor and
a healing agent and stabilized by silica nanocapsules containing thymol
blue as corrosion sensor. The microcarriers are then embedded in a
water-based polymer matrix coated on metal substrates. When the coating
or metal is mechanically damaged, the healing agent is released from
the droplets to hinder further corrosion of the metal. When the local
pH value near the metal surface is changing by the generation of hydroxide
ion due to the corrosion process, a change of color is detected as
well as a release of corrosion inhibitor, leading to a significant
decrease of corrosion rate of the coated metal.