Inhibition of organosilane/ATP@HQ self-healing passivator for pyrite oxidation

Organosilane, with functional organic groups attached to inorganic silicon atoms, exhibits excellent passivation performance for pyrite. However, a considerable number of micro-cracks will gradually appear on the surface of passivation film under long-term corrosion of oxidizing medium, resulting in a significant decrease of passivation effect. To improve the stability and long-term performance of organosilane coating, a novel passivator ([email protected]) with self-healing function was prepared to inhibit the oxidation of pyrite. We chose 3-mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane (Prop-SH) and tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) as the host coating (PT), and attapulgite clay (ATP) loaded with 8-hydroxyquinoline (8-HQ) was used to endow the coating with better passivation and self-healing performance. The electrochemical and chemical leaching results showed that the addition of [email protected] greatly improved the passivation performance of PT coating. The passivation efficiencies of total Fe and SO42− reached to 88.1% and 79.2%, respectively. We also found that the protective capability of the scratched [email protected] coating can be recovered automatically through 8-HQ release from ATP. The passivation and self-healing mechanisms were investigated by FT-IR, XPS, 29Si NMR, and other characterization methods, which were as follows: firstly, the organosilanes hydrolyzed to form highly active silanol groups, then dehydration condensation reaction occurred between silanol molecules and [email protected] to obtain cross-linked network structure connected by Si–O–Si bonds. After that, Si–OH groups reacted with the hydroxyl groups of pyrite to form Fe–O–Si bonds, thereby an inert and dense passivation film attached to the surface of pyrite. Once the passivation film is locally damaged, 8-HQ will automatically release to repair the cracks.