Ian Wark Research Institute
ARC Special Research Centre
ARC Special Research Centre
Research Area: Nanomaterials, biomaterials
Supervisors: Prof
Namita Roy Choudhury and Prof
Hans Griesser
Description: Thin film coatings are used for a wide variety of purposes, including protection from environmental attack, abrasive wear, erosion, impact and overheating. It is common for metallic components to be protected by ceramic coatings; several other types of substrate/coating combinations are also routinely employed. Various coating deposition processes have been developed, including thermal spraying, electrostatic spraying, physical vapour deposition, chemical vapour deposition, surface oxidation, painting and plasma polymerisation. Organic coatings that have been applied with varying degrees of success include polyimides, polyurethanes, polyesters, polyacrylates and polystyrenes. These coatings have performed well in corrosion tests, and combinations of different polymer species allow the tailoring of properties such as thermal stability and electrical impedance. However, there are shortcomings in using some organic polymers because they can display the following undesirable features: a) they have hydrophilic characteristics, b) micro-organisms readily settle and grow on them; leading to degradation, c) they display poor wetting and adhesion to metals, and d) they usually form mechanically weak films.
One of the most interesting surface treatment methods is the plasma polymerisation process. The process enables to deposit corrosion resistant layers on a variety of substrates with reasonably high rate. Additonally, plasma polymer thin films are known to be stable films with good adhesion properties. Therefore, in this work we plan to deposit polymeric thin film on metallic substrates by plasma polymerization and, for comparison, by solution chemistry. The process must lead to a high polymer density on the metal surface to prevent any adsorption of moisture and oxygen. Also, the effects of different corrosion inhibitors such as antibacterial compounds and surfactants will be investigated by various gravimetric, spectroscopic, microscopic and electrochemical methods.
Funding: International students should apply for an International Postgraduate Research Scholarship (IPRS) and a UniSA President’s Scholarship (UPS). To be eligible for UPS, applicants must have a supervisor willing to nominate them for consideration.
Australian students should apply for an Australian Postgraduate Award (APA) and a UniSA Australian Postgraduate Research Award
(USAPRA).
