6325.1:
NANO structured Thin Films for PROtecting and Functionalising Materials: NANOPRO
Abstract
The present feasibility study aims at demonstrating the use of thin film coatings with a supreme stability and protectiveness against environ-mental attack (corrosion, tarnishing, oxidation) on metal surfaces.
Thin films can offer protection by forming a physical barrier between the metal surface and a gaseous / aqueous environment. However, thin coatings mostly contain pinholes, leading to a localised attack at the defects of the coating. Incorporation of metal particles in the thin coatings enables to adjust the local electrochemical potential of the substrate at the site of a defective coating in such a way that corro-sion attack is suppressed. Depending on the mechanism of the corrosion attack, different approaches to adjust the potential will be evaluated (e.g. establishing oxidising or reducing 'nanocontacts'). Hence, using principles known for corrosion protection in a large-scale, local corrosion protection with very little material used for active species in the coating may become possible.