Published online by Cambridge University Press: 21 February 2011
The effectiveness of phthalocyanines and polyphthalocyanines as corrosion inhibiting coatings for protection of steel have been studied. The metallo-phthalocyanines studied included phthalocyanine tetracarboxylates of Fe(III), Co(II), VO(IV), Cr(III), Si(IV) and Zn(II). Polymeric phthalocyanine coatings based on Fe(III) polyphthalocyanines gave the highest inhibitor efficiency of 82%, as confirmed by AC impedance analysis. The polymerization was achieved by simple dip coating followed by heat treatment of the coated surface at 450°C in an inert atmosphere. The resulting coating is adherent and electrically conducting when appropriately doped. Our recent findings indicate that the inhibition efficiencies can be further improved by introducing a long alkyl chain into the phthalocyanine molecule.