Polymer/Clay Nanocomposite: A Viable Anti-Corrosion Coating for Geothermal Applications

Abstract

Polymer modification has been attracting the attention of scientific community due to its process of combining attractive properties of different materials and fusing it into a hybrid high performance material. These properties depend on the type of environment and its application. Due to the harsh conditions posed by geothermal fluids to ordinary materials of construction, high performance materials are desired to lessen the frequency or even eliminate maintenance cleaning of surface components and to prolong the service life of pipelines and other surface equipment that are critically affected by erosion-corrosion phenomenon. To further enhance the mechanical properties of a high performance polymer material, nanofillers are usually incorporated in the polymer matrix to make up a nanocomposite. In this study, a nanocomposite made of Toughened polymer and organically modified montmorillonite (Polymer-oMMT) was synthesized to be used as a coating. The enhancement of the mechanical properties of the polymer by addition of oMMT by its intercalation/exfoliation into the polymer matrix was determined using X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric tests (TGA & DSC), hardness test, and adhesion test. To determine the viability of the synthesized coating in corrosive environment, it was applied to a carbon steel coupon and immersed in simulated acidic geothermal brine. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and potentiodynamic polarization scan (PPS) were conducted to assess the protection efficiency of the coating. The stability and the protection efficiency of the Polymer-oMMT were also evaluated under high temperature and high pressure conditions.