The disbonding of powder polyester coating on steel pretreated by zinc-phosphate and iron-phosphate coatings

Abstract

The influence of different types of conversion phosphate coatings on the corrosion stability of top powder polyester coating on steel was investigated. The morphology of phosphate coatings was investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), composition by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and surface coverage by voltametric anodic dissolution (VAD) technique. The corrosion stability of polyester coating on steel pretreated by phosphate coatings was investigated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). It was shown that small crystal nuclei of iron-phosphate coating have sporadically emerged on the steel substrate while zinc-phosphate coating had more compact structure with better surface coverage. After prolonged exposure, there was a significant decrease in Rp values for polyester/zinc-phosphate protective system, as a result of the disbondment of polyester coating, while Rp values for polyester coating on steel pretreated with iron-phosphate coating remained almost unchanged, pointing to a greater stability of this protective system.