The anti-corrosion performance of the epoxy coating enhanced via 5-Amino-1,3,4-thiadiazole-2-thiol grafted graphene oxide at ambient and low temperatures

Abstract In this study, the 5-Amino-1,3,4-thiadiazole-2-thiol grafted graphene oxide (AMT-GO) composite was synthesized and the corrosion protection properties of the neat EP, GO/EP and AMT-GO/EP coatings at the ambient and low temperatures were comparatively studied. Based on the experimental results, AMT is anchored on GO mainly via the reactions between -NH2 and -SH of AMT and -COOH and -CH(O)CH- of GO. After modification, the dispersity of the GO nanosheets is significantly improved. As the filler, both of the GO and AMT-GO nano-platforms could enhance the protective ability of the polymer coating, the latter possessing the more remarkable effect because of its better dispersity and the beneficial impact provided by exposed -NH2 and -SH. All of the three coatings exhibit worse anti-corrosion performance at the low temperature than the ambient temperature, because the diffusion of corrosive media across the polymer matrix and along the substrate/coating interface could be accelerated by freezing.