▎ 摘　　要

For decades the zinc chromate and zinc phosphate pigments have been utilized as the most popular anti-corrosive pigments in the anti-corrosive organic coatings formulations. However, these pigments include heavy and toxic zinc and chrome metals, causing serious risks for the human health and ecosystem. Therefore, demands for finding less toxic and more environmentally friendly alternatives are extremely in progress in recent years. In recent years, the carbon based nanomaterials, such as graphene and graphene oxide, have drawn significant attention of the researchers and scientist for making polymer composites with superior anti-corrosion properties. In this study a well crystalized single atom layered structure graphene oxide quantum dot (GOQD) with lateral dimension, ranging from 2 to 20 nm, was synthesized through a bottom-up" method by direct pyrolyzing of citric acid and then functionalized by polyaniline (PAni) through a rapid-mixture polymerization procedure. The morphology and chemistry of the GOQD-PAni were characterized through atomic force microscopy (AFM), high resolution-transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and photo-luminescent (PL) technique. The effect of GOQD-PAni on the corrosion protection properties of epoxy coating was investigated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and salt spray test. Results confirmed that both barrier and inhibitive action of epoxy coating were significantly enhanced in the presence of GOQD-PAni. The fine GOQD-PAni well dispersed in the epoxy matrix, filled the pores and defects and blocked the diffusion pathways. (C) 2018 Taiwan Institute of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.