Advanced Corrosion Protection Systems—from Metal Passivity to Smart Coatings: In Honor of Prof. Dr. Mário Ferreira

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue aims to present timely and influential scientific contributions that advance the broader understanding of advanced protection systems, innovative research, and emerging technologies designed to mitigate and manage corrosion and materials degradation.

The scope encompasses pioneering research, and state-of-the-art technologies highlight recent progress in understanding and enhancing the passivity of metals as a cornerstone for advanced corrosion protection systems. Passivity plays a critical role in mitigating material degradation, ensuring structural integrity, and extending the service life of components exposed to harsh environments.

Passive layer doping has emerged as a powerful strategy to enhance the performance of corrosion protection systems. By introducing selected dopants into the passive oxide film, its chemical and electrochemical stability can be significantly improved, making it more resistant to breakdown in aggressive environments such as chloride-rich or acidic conditions. Beyond stability, doping can also modify the semiconducting properties of the oxide layer, reducing susceptibility to localized corrosion phenomena like pitting. Furthermore, tailored functionality can be achieved through the incorporation of specific elements that impart self-healing capabilities or catalytic activity, opening new pathways for advanced applications in demanding industrial sectors.

Smart coatings represent a new generation of protective systems designed to respond dynamically to environmental stimuli, offering self-healing, corrosion inhibition, and multifunctional capabilities. Click chemistry provides a versatile and efficient approach for functionalizing coating matrices, enabling precise incorporation of active molecules and corrosion inhibitors through surface functionalization and selective reactions. Meanwhile, nanostructured double-layered hydroxides (LDHs) serve as advanced carriers for controlled release of inhibitors and other functional agents, enhancing coating performance under aggressive conditions. The synergy between these technologies opens pathways for coatings that not only protect but also provide tailored solutions, thus adapting and delivering superior durability and sustainability for critical industrial applications.

We invite contributions that explore fundamental mechanisms of passive film formation, stability under extreme conditions, and innovative strategies to improve passive layer microstructure and interfacial properties through alloy design, surface science and engineering, and smart coatings. By advancing knowledge in this area, we seek to foster breakthroughs that enable more reliable, sustainable, and cost-effective corrosion protection solutions for diverse industrial applications.

This Special Issue dedicated in Honor of Prof. Mário Ferreira brings together contributions that encompass both fundamental and applied research in electrochemical corrosion and surface science. The focus is on advancing understanding of corrosion protection mechanisms, exploring surface electrochemistry and novel chemical formulations as it relates to metal passivity and the development of smart coatings.

Dr. David M. Bastidas
Prof. Dr. Raman Singh
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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