Influence the Addition of Basalt Powder on the Protective Properties of Epoxy as a Coating for Steel

This work aims to prepare an epoxy basalt powder and apply it as a protective coating for steel. Basalt powder was dispersed in epoxy resin with different doses of 3, 6, 9, and 12% of the epoxy weight. The prepared modified epoxy coatings were applied to the surfaces of carbon steel plates, and the coated samples were evaluated as follows: dry film thickness (DFT), adhesion strength, impact resistance, bending test, abrasion resistance, and fire and chemical resistance. The study revealed that using basalt powder improves the protective performance of epoxy. The obtained results showed that the optimum basalt content is 9%, and the enhancing coating performance of epoxy modified with 9% basalt as compared to neat epoxy was as follows: DFT increased by 50%, adhesion strength enhanced by 85%, and impact resistance increased by 95%. Abrasion and fire resistance were improved by 13% and 30%, respectively. Lastly, the chemical resistance of coatings was changed from fair to excellent. Keywords: epoxy, epoxy basalt coating, steel protection, basalt powder