Bioinspired self-healing oleogel-infused surface on tinplate with enhanced durability and corrosion protection

OIS is prepared through a three-step procedure. • OIS shows self-healing and ice-prevention ability. • OIS shows corrosion resistance in corrosive medium. Corrosion significantly undermines the mechanical strength and surface properties of tinplate, limiting its reliability in key industries such as food packaging and manufacturing. To address this challenge, we developed a robust and self-healing coating with enhanced anticorrosion performance. A micro/nano-structured tin coating was first fabricated on tinplate substrates via electrodeposition, followed by the layer-by-layer self-assembly of dopamine and thiol to achieve superhydrophobicity. An oleogel infused surface (OIS) was subsequently created by applying an oleogel onto the superhydrophobic layer. Electrochemical evaluations revealed that the resulting OIS exhibited long-term corrosion resistance, retaining a high low-frequency impedance modulus of approximately 1.53 × 10 10 Ω·cm 2 after 816 h of immersion in an aqueous environment. Notably, the coating demonstrated high self-healing capability: although mechanical damage caused the low-frequency impedance to drop to approximately 2.23 × 10 6 Ω·cm², thermal treatment effectively restored it to 2.98 × 10 10 Ω·cm². Furthermore, the coating maintained stable anticorrosion performance even after 20 repeated cycles of scratching and healing, underscoring its durability and repeatable self-healing functionality. This work presents a promising strategy for extending the service life of tinplate components in corrosive environments. Download: Download high-res image (176KB) Download: Download full-size image