Abdelqader El Guerraf , Sana Ben Jadi , Meriyem Mouloudi , Mostafa Chhiba , Mohamed Essahli , Mohammed Bazzaoui , El Arbi Bazzaoui
{"title":"Development of conductive fractal copper–polypyrrole nanocomposites for dual corrosion inhibition and ammonia detection in metallic food containers","authors":"Abdelqader El Guerraf , Sana Ben Jadi , Meriyem Mouloudi , Mostafa Chhiba , Mohamed Essahli , Mohammed Bazzaoui , El Arbi Bazzaoui","doi":"10.1016/j.matchemphys.2025.130696","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In the present study, we present the development and characterization of a polypyrrole (PPy)-based nanocomposite embedded with fractal copper (Cu) crystals, engineered to provide enhanced corrosion resistance and ammonia-sensing capability for metallic food packaging. The nanocomposite coatings were prepared by electrodeposition on industrial tinplate electrodes in oxalic acid (PPy@OxAc) and sodium salicylate (PPy@NaSa) media. Structural analyses via SEM and AFM revealed distinct morphologies with copper crystallization forming leaf-like fractal structures, promoting high surface roughness and contact angles (96° for PPy@OxAc and 93° for PPy@NaSa), indicating hydrophobicity advantageous for corrosion resistance. Corrosion performance, evaluated through open circuit potential (OCP), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and potentiodynamic polarization in a 3 % NaCl solution, demonstrated an over 95 % inhibition efficiency. This was evidenced by a significant decrease in corrosion current density from 2.238 μA/cm<sup>2</sup> to 0.083 μA/cm<sup>2</sup> over immersion times up to 144 h. Ammonia exposure tests highlighted a significant and reversible increase in resistance upon NH<sub>3</sub> exposure, linked to electron or proton transfer mechanisms in the PPy matrix. These results support the dual function of Cu–PPy nanocomposites in providing prolonged corrosion protection and real-time detection of spoilage indicators, marking a substantial step toward sustainable and intelligent food packaging solutions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18227,"journal":{"name":"Materials Chemistry and Physics","volume":"339 ","pages":"Article 130696"},"PeriodicalIF":4.3000,"publicationDate":"2025-03-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Materials Chemistry and Physics","FirstCategoryId":"88","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0254058425003426","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"MATERIALS SCIENCE, MULTIDISCIPLINARY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
In the present study, we present the development and characterization of a polypyrrole (PPy)-based nanocomposite embedded with fractal copper (Cu) crystals, engineered to provide enhanced corrosion resistance and ammonia-sensing capability for metallic food packaging. The nanocomposite coatings were prepared by electrodeposition on industrial tinplate electrodes in oxalic acid (PPy@OxAc) and sodium salicylate (PPy@NaSa) media. Structural analyses via SEM and AFM revealed distinct morphologies with copper crystallization forming leaf-like fractal structures, promoting high surface roughness and contact angles (96° for PPy@OxAc and 93° for PPy@NaSa), indicating hydrophobicity advantageous for corrosion resistance. Corrosion performance, evaluated through open circuit potential (OCP), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and potentiodynamic polarization in a 3 % NaCl solution, demonstrated an over 95 % inhibition efficiency. This was evidenced by a significant decrease in corrosion current density from 2.238 μA/cm2 to 0.083 μA/cm2 over immersion times up to 144 h. Ammonia exposure tests highlighted a significant and reversible increase in resistance upon NH3 exposure, linked to electron or proton transfer mechanisms in the PPy matrix. These results support the dual function of Cu–PPy nanocomposites in providing prolonged corrosion protection and real-time detection of spoilage indicators, marking a substantial step toward sustainable and intelligent food packaging solutions.
期刊介绍:
Materials Chemistry and Physics is devoted to short communications, full-length research papers and feature articles on interrelationships among structure, properties, processing and performance of materials. The Editors welcome manuscripts on thin films, surface and interface science, materials degradation and reliability, metallurgy, semiconductors and optoelectronic materials, fine ceramics, magnetics, superconductors, specialty polymers, nano-materials and composite materials.