Synthesis of polyaniline‐modified mesoporous‐silica containers for anticorrosion coatings via in‐situ polymerization and surface‐protected etching

An efficient type of container for anticorrosion coating based on polyaniline (PANI) modified mesoporous silica (pS) sphere has been first prepared via in‐situ polymerization and surface‐protected etching. The PANI‐modified containers not only show higher concentration of loaded inhibitor than pS, but also protect steel well because of the PANI. The coating with 1H‐benzotriazole (BTA) loaded containers shows significant anticorrosion property because of the release of BTA from containers. The structure and morphology of container are characterized by FTIR, XRD, SEM and TEM. The release of BTA from pS and PANI‐modified containers is determined by UV in water. The possible self‐healing anticorrosion performances are evaluated by EIS and polarization curves which indicate that the coating including BTA‐loaded containers performs best. The strategy of modifying pS by PANI is effective and successful. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.