Enhancement of Barrier and Mechanical Performance of Steel Coated with Epoxy Filled with Micron and Nano Alumina Fillers

Steel is an essential part of our life as it is used in wide applications as food equipment and heavy construction. The polymeric coating prevents the deterioration of the properties of metals due to rust and corrosion. This study investigated a reinforced polymeric coating to steel for enhancing barrier and mechanical properties. A comparison between different configurations of double-layered polymeric coatings was attained. The results showed that a maximum enhancement of 16.7%, 18.9%, 32.6%, 8.5%, and 5.7% in tensile strength, tensile strain, toughness, flexural strength, and flexural strain, respectively were achieved with a coating of epoxy filled with 1wt% Al₂O₃ microparticles before 1wt% Al₂O₃ nanoparticles on both sides as compared with pure epoxy coating. Adding micro/nanoparticles to epoxy coating enhanced the barrier properties of the coated steel against salt solution and citric acid environment as compared to pure epoxy coated steel.

Keywords:
Micro/nanocomposites coating; Alumina; Steel; Mechanical properties; Food equipment; Barrier properties