Improvement in corrosion protective performance of polyacrylate coating based on corrosion inhibitors microcapsules

[Display omitted] •Facile synthesized corrosion inhibitors microcapsules with regular spherical structures.•Corrosion inhibitors microcapsules deserved excellent compatibility with coating matrix.•Corrosion inhibition effect of the coating was significantly improved.•Secondary protection could be induced to the metal when the coating was damaged. As a waterborne product, polyacrylate coating has become more and more popular due to its environmental-friendly characteristics. In order to improve its corrosion protective performance, a type of pH sensitive microcapsules was designed, loaded corrosion inhibitors and combined with polyacrylate coating. The results indicated that the corrosion inhibitors microcapsules (CIMs) rendered spherical structures and deserved good compatibility with the coating matrix. The corrosion protective properties of the coating were significantly improved by combining with CIMs. The microcapsules could control the release of corrosion inhibitors in response to pH variations, providing secondary protection for the metal when the coating was damaged.