Thickness-properties synergy in organic–inorganic consolidated melting-gel coatings for protection of 304 stainless steel in NaCl solutions

Homogeneous and crack-free methyl-substituted organic–inorganic hybrid glass coatings (thickness up to 10 μm) were deposited on AISI 304 stainless steel. Different hybrid glasses obtained fromconsolidation of the diluted melting gels with various methyltriethoxysilane (MTES)/dimethyldiethoxysilane (DMDES) ratios were evaluated considering chemical structure, coating adhesion and corrosion protection. The 70MTES/30DMDES (molar%) melting-gel coating provided improved corrosion protection for this steel due to the synergy of different properties: a highly cross-linked inorganic structure, a coating plasticity based on the hybrid network, and a good adhesion to the substrate through hydroxyl groups. Electrochemical results showa good barrier film with a passive range of 500 mV, a lowanodic current density (0.03 nA cm−2) and impedance values of 109.5Ωcm2 after two months of immersion in 3.5 wt.% NaCl solution