Phosphating Modification with Metal Ions of Carbon Steel Surface to Improve the Influence of Anticorrosion Properties

The purpose of this research is to investigate the influence of the phosphatizing process with Ni2+, Ce3+, and Ti2+ ions on the properties of the coating to obtain better corrosion protection of the metal. Steel corrosion occurs through physicochemical interaction between the metal and its surrounding environment. This leads to a change in the metal’s physical, mechanical, and optical properties that can cause damage to the functionality of the metal, which in turn may result in accidents or other malfunctions. Carbon steel grade has limited resistance to corrosion, depending on the carbon content and alloying element, the microstructure, and the surrounding environment of the material. This paper present tests that have been carried out on some of the physicochemical properties of protective epoxy and polyurethane coating on carbon steel grade. Coatings represent one of the methods available to protect metal surfaces from corrosion. Coating properties such as thickness, hardness, and adhesion were investigated. The same properties were tested by exposing the sample plates to corrosive conditions of the humid chamber and seawater. Their anticorrosion properties were explored by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) techniques under immersion in 3.5 wt.% NaCl solutions as a corrosive medium. Part of the samples prior to application of the coatingwere modified with a phosphate solution containing metal ions: Ni2+, Ce3+, and Ti2+ to further investigate the effects of phosphatization on the properties of the coating. After exposure of the plates to the salt and moist chamber conditions, no traces of corrosion products, cracking or peeling of the coating were found on the surfaces. The adhesion properties were tested by the pull-off adhesion test. It was found that metal/polymer adhesion was satisfied according to EN ISO 4624:2016 and had the same value for all samples. However, a detailed EIS analysis showed a higher resistance of phosphate samples with Ce3+ ions than samples that were phosphated with Ni2+ and Ti2+ ions and those that did not have a sparingly soluble phosphate salt layer.