Green synergy: Eco-friendly, high-performance anti-corrosion and wear-resistant coatings utilizing organosolv lignin and polydimethylsiloxane
Di Wang, Jun Zhao, Per M. Claesson, Fan Zhang, Jinshan Pan, Yijun Shi
Abstract
Corrosion and wear remain significant challenges for materials, causing substantial economic losses and safety risks. Anti-corrosion and anti-wear coatings provide an effective solution. However, traditional coatings are often fossil-based and contain heavy metals, posing environmental concerns. The drive for eco-friendly coatings has led to the exploration of green materials. This study combined lignin, an abundant organic material, and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), a known hydrophobic material, to address the challenges. Organosolv lignin was functionalised with (3-Aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (APTES), then chemically grafted on PDMS for the final coating synthesis. The optimised coating achieved through an eco-friendly process, exhibiting enhanced hydrophobicity and barrier properties, showing excellent long-term corrosion resistance in NaCl solution. The optimal coating formulation contained 15 wt% lignin and 40 wt% PDMS, demonstrating a high corrosion resistance (measured impedance of 1010 Ω·cm2), which remains effective even after 3 weeks of immersion in 1 M NaCl solution. This coating also showed good wear resistance, with a low friction coefficient evident from nano scratch tests.