The addition of SiO2-GO hybrid material enhanced the tribological properties of fluorocarbon resin in marine corrosive environments

Abstract

Fluorocarbon resin (FC), as a commonly used topcoat material for coating systems, is susceptible to the combined effects of seawater corrosion and ocean current erosion when working in marine environments for a long time, often causing hard particle wear and damage. In order to improve the tribological properties of FC resin, graphene oxide (GO) was modified by sol-gel method, and SiO2-GO hybrid nanomaterials and SiO2-GO/FC composite coatings were innovatively prepared. Through a 50 days long-term immersion experiment, the friction coefficient and wear rate of the composite coating were characterized. The study showed that the addition of SiO2-GO effectively reduced the friction coefficient and wear rate of the coating before corrosion immersion. The average friction coefficient of 0.4 wt% SiO2-GO/FC under a 10 N load for 15 minutes was 0.172, and the wear rate was 1.19×10−4 mm3/Nm, a decrease of 69.9% compared to pure FC coating. After long-term immersion, an oxide layer generally appeared between the coating and the substrate. On the 50th day of immersion, FC, GO/FC, 0.2 wt% SiO2-GO/FC, and 0.6 wt% SiO2-GO/FC all lost their protective ability, while 0.4 wt% SiO2-GO/FC maintained basic tribological properties due to its excellent corrosion resistance. This was mainly due to the lubrication characteristics and good dispersibility of SiO2-GO, which endowed the coating with stronger wear resistance. In addition, the maze effect formed by SiO2-GO within the coating reduced corrosion damage, indirectly improving the tribological performance of the coating.