Recent advances in emerging integrated antifouling and anticorrosion coatings

Abstract

With the rapid development of the marine industry, biofouling and surface corrosion of underwater equipment have become a major issue. Traditional antifouling or anticorrosion coatings with a single function cannot meet the current requirements. Recent developments in materials science and synthesis techniques have brought new opportunities and challenges in the field of integrated antifouling and anticorrosion coatings (IAACs). In this review, the mechanisms of biofouling and corrosion are introduced to help readers understand how their negative impact can be mitigated. Most of the IAACs are designed by combining antifouling and anticorrosion units into one coating, while several IAACs disobey the mentioned design principle since they have inherent antifouling and anticorrosion functions. This review highlights the recently developed IAACs, including polyaniline-based coatings, copper/amorphous carbon coatings, polydopamine/polymer brushes, amphiphilic polymers, endospore-loaded sol–gel coatings, hydrophobic/corrosion inhibitor coatings, nanocomposites, and bioinspired coatings. These emerging IAACs have been introduced in the last decade and may not yet be mature in practical applications and commercialization; therefore, their advantages and disadvantages are discussed. Finally, the future development of IAACs is discussed. We expect that this review will not only help readers understand the design principle of IAACs but also contribute to their development.

Keywords

• Antifouling
• Anticorrosion
• Coatings
• Marine antifouling coatings
• Marine anticorrosion