TY - JOUR A1 - Fahmy, Alaa A1 - El Sabbagh, M. A1 - Bedair, M. A1 - Gangan, A. A1 - El-Sabbah, M. A1 - El-Bahy, S. A1 - Friedrich, J. T1 - One-step plasma deposited thin SiOxCy films for corrosion resistance of low carbon steel N2 - Tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) was used as a chemical precursor to deposit ultra-thin SiO x C y plasma polymer films onto mild steel surfaces for preventing the corrosion process. The structure–property relationships of the coatings were evaluated by X-ray Photo Spectroscopy (XPS), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform InfraRed spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) and Energy Dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) completed with Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The SEM micrographs confirmed a pinhole-free surface morphology of the low-pressure deposited plasma polymer films. The TEOS molecules become fragmented in the plasma by numerous collisions with energy-rich electrons and heavier particles. Recombination of fragments and condensation onto the steel substrate is responsible for the formation of organic SiO containing plasma polymer layers. Such thin layers consist of predominantly SiO x structures. Their properties are determined largely by the gap distance between the two samples used as electrodes in the plasma. The efficiency of the corrosion-protecting coating was compared with uncoated samples. The corrosion protection was determined by exposure of samples to 3.5% NaCl aqueous solutions. For this purpose, polarization and Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) were used to monitor the corrosion. The optimal gap distance between the electrodes was determined for corrosion protection. The best protective efficiency reached more than 97% of the total protection as measured at room temperature. KW - Thin films KW - Corrosion resistance KW - Mild steel KW - Plasma treatments KW - Tetraethyl orthosilicate PY - 2020 DO - https://doi.org/10.1080/01694243.2020.1856539 VL - 35 IS - 16 SP - 1734 EP - 1751 PB - Taylor & Francis AN - OPUS4-52303 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Fahmy, Alaa A1 - Saied, M. A. A. A1 - Morgan, N. A1 - Abdelbary, H. A1 - Bahy, S. M. A1 - Schönhals, Andreas A1 - Friedrich, J. F. T1 - Modified polyvinyl chloride membrane grafted with an ultra-thin polystyrene film: structure and electrochemical properties N2 - The work explores the synthesis and the properties of a novel composite membrane System based on modified polystyrene (PS) grafted onto a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) membrane. PVC membranes were prepared by solution-casting followed by exposure to an atmospheric pressure dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) with O2 to obtain an activated Surface for grafting PS to it. Moreover, the thus prepared membranes were chemically modified furthermore by amination with polyethyleneimine or sulfonation with 4 M sulfuric acid. The membrane surface characteristics such as wettability, structure and morphology were investigated using water contact angle measurements, attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy experiments. The thermogravimetric stability and electrolytic responses of the membranes were studied utilizing TGA, ion exchange capacity (IEC), and solvent uptake. A significant result of plasma and chemical modification was to produce a membrane material with low permeability. Thus, the methanol permeability of the sulfonated membranes measured for 12 h was measured to 2.34$10� 8 cm2 s� 1 compared to 177.00$10� 8 cm2 s� 1 of Nafion 117®which is considered as a benchmark. This result indicates that the prepared sulfonated samples are an innovative and effective material for decreasing the methanol crossover in fuel cells to a great extent. This makes the PVC-g-St membranes are promising and attractive as new materials for polyelectrolyte membrane for fuel cells. KW - Electrolyte membrane KW - Fuell cells PY - 2021 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-526794 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmrt.2021.04.018 VL - 12 SP - 2273 EP - 2284 PB - Elsevier B.V. AN - OPUS4-52679 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -