SBIR Phase I: Durable Superhydrophobic Smart Coating with Active Corrosion Protection

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to create a cost-effective, high-performance anticorrosive coating for protecting metal structures, particularly in marine environments. High value assets that are essential parts of the US energy infrastructure, such as offshore oil and gas platforms, marine ships and wind turbines, are exposed to one of the most corrosive environments with direct exposure to salt water via immersion and seawater spray. Corrosion of these metal structures is estimated to cost the world economy around $2.3 trillion in maintenance and replacement capital every year. This project's superhydrophobic coating has the potential to significantly reduce both cost and waste by improving structural safety, reducing maintenance frequency and lengthening the operating lifetime of such vital assets. It will also reduce the environmental impact of corrosion protection systems by using less harmful materials, negating coating repainting needs and extending metal lifetime. This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project seeks to make a durable, superhydrophobic, high-performance anticorrosive coating through creation of dual-function coating additives. Coatings and corrosion inhibitors are generally the first line of defense in this fight against corrosion. Highly-water repellent superhydrophobic coatings are leading contenders for delivering a step change in corrosion protection performance. However, current solutions suffer from two notable issues: high cost and low durability in highly corrosive marine environments. Existing superhydrophobic coatings require complex and expensive equipment and materials. In addition, these coatings are easily damaged during use, resulting in the loss of their water repellency and corrosion protection ability. The key innovation of this project is a novel dual-function additive that can impart coatings with both superhydrophobicity (passive corrosion protection) and on-demand corrosion inhibitors release (active corrosion protection). This additive based approach results in a durable coating that retains its protective abilities even through significant use and abrasion and enables adaptation to many other coating applications, even ones outside of corrosion. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.