About corrosion

Corrosion can be defined as the degradation of a material (metals, concrete or polymers) due to a reaction with the surrounding environment. Corrosion is an electrochemical process whereby differences in electric potential in small areas on the steel surface involving anodes, cathodes and an electrolyte (medium able to conduct ions) drive the formation of oxide, hydroxyde or sulphide degradation compounds.

Degradation, in turn, implies deterioration of the physical and structural properties of the materials and eventually causes failure of assets and properties, leading to enormous industrial losses with a consequent depletion of natural resources.

According to NACE, the indirect cost of corrosion is estimated to be equal or greater than direct costs, corresponding approximately to 6% of GDP for industrialized countries and impacts a number of industries, including Oil&Gas, heavy manufacturing, transportation and infrastructure.

There are a number of strategies to control corrosion. One major issue is that corrosion can largely vary depending on the environment that causes the corrosion stress (H2S, pollution, chlorine, moisture etc presence in the environment). The choice of a means of corrosion control depends on economics, safety requirements and the kind of environment generating corrosion. The most common strategy consists in shielding the surface from corrosion agents using protective coating systems (passive corrosion protection). To be considered corrosion protective, a coating has to be able to protect the substrate acting as a barrier to oxygen and water, thereby eliminating the corrosion cell. A drawback of the past attempts to control corrosion has been the inclusion of toxic compounds (Cr, Zn) in coating formulations to prevent corrosion. While the efficacy of these compounds is quite recognized, their use has been recently restricted or banned and new less toxic eco-friendly formulations have popped up in the protective coating market.

Nanto Paint® enters the protective coating market delivering first-to-use innovative and nanotechnology-based functional coatings able to fulfill the atmospheric corrosion protection requirements of the most challenging environments thanks to the addition of innovative nanotechnology to the formulation. Nanto Paint® series of coatings are obtained by incorporating specifically functionalized nanoparticles to conventional matrices. The great advantage derives from the flexibility of the chemical functionalization that Nanto Paint® proprietary technology is able to perform on the nanoparticles surface, which results in high quality protective coatings efficiently inhibiting corrosion even in the harshest environments.