New Pigments and Additives for Corrosion Protection by Organic Coatings

Corrosion protection of above- and underground structures, as well as of industrial products, is most widely achieved through protective coatings. The durability of these protective coatings is commonly prolonged thanks to the addition of pigments or specific compounds that are able to provide the substrate with improved corrosion protection. During the past 20 years, the field of corrosion protection science and technology has developed, produced, and tested a variety of novel pigments and compounds whose full potential and long-term efficiency are as yet unknown. Pigments in paints are not only added to improve barrier properties, but can also be designed to provide passivation, galvanic protection, pH buffering, or self-healing of the polymeric matrix. Corrosion inhibition can be achieved by adding to the polymeric paste partially soluble pigments or a stimuli-sensitive reservoir of chemical species in which the leakage depends on an electrochemical or chemical trigger. Along with the development of modern paints, technologists have also been focused on new pigments for the development of so-called “smart coatings.” These new coatings are in demand to address environmental concerns related to traditional pigments and compounds (such as chromates and phosphates), to provide self-healing, and to improve the longevity of the coatings. This objective can be accomplished by combining the polymeric phase with innovative pigments/compounds exhibiting tailored properties. In this field, there is significant ongoing research seeking to improve the functionality of protective pigmented organic layers, that often employs a nanotechnology-based approach.

This Research Topic featured in Frontiers in Materials's Environmental Materials section is motivated by the need to update the state-of-the-art in the development of completely new pigments for corrosion protection and to establish a benchmark by taking a snapshot of the efficiency of the current cutting-edge solutions.

We welcome the submission of original research articles, as well as review articles, devoted to the development, optimization, assessment, and testing on new pigments for corrosion protection. Fundamental studies aimed at gaining mechanistic insight, innovative environmentally friendly solutions to replace traditional materials, and applied studies focused on the screening/comparison of current corrosion protection strategies are of particular interest to this Research Topic.

Contributions are encouraged in the following areas:

 • synthesis and characterization of pigments/compounds for corrosion inhibition
 • environmentally friendly pigments for corrosion protection
 • development and characterization of reservoirs for “smart coatings”
 • mechanistic investigations of inhibitor release from nano/micro sized reservoirs
 • pigments for self-healing coatings (for the polymeric film or the buried interface)
 • assessments of the corrosion protection efficiency of pigments
 • nanotechnology-based approaches to the development/study of pigments
 • screening of corrosion inhibitor pigments for coatings
 • service life prediction for coatings
 • new approaches to electrochemical and physio/chemical assessments of pigment effectiveness