Graphene Coating on Copper by Electrophoretic Deposition for Corrosion Prevention

In this paper, we report the use of a simple and inexpensive electrophoretic deposition (EPD) technique to develop thin, uniform, and transparent graphene oxide (GO) coating on copper (Cu) substrate on application of 10 V for 1 s from an aqueous suspension containing 0.03 wt % graphene oxide. GO was partially reduced during the EPD process itself. The GO coated on Cu was completely reduced chemically by using sodium borohydride (NaBH4) solution. The coatings were characterized by field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), Raman spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), XRD, and UV/VIS spectrophotometry. Corrosion resistance of the coatings was evaluated by electrochemical measurements under accelerated corrosion condition in 3.5 wt % NaCl solution. The GO coated on Cu and chemically reduced by NaBH4 showed more positive corrosion potential (Ecorr) (−145.4 mV) compared to GO coated on Cu (−182.2 mV) and bare Cu (−235.3 mV), and much lower corrosion current (Icorr) (7.01 µA/cm2) when compared to 15.375 µA/cm2 for bare Cu indicating that reduced GO film on copper exhibit enhanced corrosion resistance. The corrosion inhibition efficiency of chemically reduced GO coated Cu was 54.40%, and its corrosion rate was 0.08 mm/year as compared to 0.18 mm/year for bare copper.