Nanoscale layer of a minimized defect area of graphene and hexagonal boron nitride on copper for excellent anti-corrosion activity

Abstract

In this work, we synthesized a monolayer of graphene and hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) using chemical vapor deposition. The physicochemical and electrochemical properties of the materials were evaluated to determine their morphology. High-purity materials and their atomic-scale coating on copper (Cu) foil were employed to prevent fast degradation rate. The hexagonal two-dimensional (2D) atomic structures of the as-prepared materials were assessed to derive their best anti-corrosion behavior. The material prepared under optimized conditions included edge-defect-free graphene nanosheets (∼0.0034 μm2) and hBN (∼0.0038 μm2) per unit area of 1 μm2. The coating of each material on the Cu surface significantly reduced the corrosion rate, which was ∼2.44 × 10–2/year and 6.57 × 10–3/year for graphene/Cu and hBN/Cu, respectively. Importantly, the corrosion rate of Cu was approximately 3-fold lower after coating with hBN relative to that of graphene/Cu. This approach suggests that the surface coating of Cu using cost-effective, eco-friendly, and the most abundant materials in nature is of interest for developing marine anti-corrosion micro-electronic devices and achieving surface modification of pure metals in industrial applications.

Review—A Review of the Corrosion Behaviour of Graphene Coatings on Metal Surfaces Obtained by Chemical Vapour Deposition

“…Alternatively, the increased temperature during graphene growth can also change the properties of the underlying metal substrate. 23,24,32,52 Furthermore, some factors accelerate the corrosion rate of the metal substrate coated by graphene layer: the presence of defects and disorders in the graphene coating, 21,35,[54][55][56] the thickness of the graphene coating (thinner coating presented higher corrosion rate compared to a thicker coating), 21,26,57 and the amount of graphene filler (percolation threshold) and the homogeneity of the dispersed graphene in the case of the composite coatings. 19,[46][47][48][49][50]58,59 Furthermore, doping graphene with N and F elements 27,60 was reported as a practical approach for enhancing the corrosion barrier ability of the graphene coating.…”