Anti-corrosion coatings provide a protective barrier between metal substrates and corrosive environments. The effectiveness of these protective systems fundamentally depends on their long-term adhesion, defined as their resistance to physical separation from the metal substrate2. When adhesion fails, delamination occurs, the physical separation of the coating from the underlying metal, reducing protection and creating conditions favourable for accelerated corrosion. Several factors critically influence adhesion performance, with surface roughness and cleanliness of the metal substrate being particularly significant3. Rougher surfaces provide enhanced mechanical interlocking, improving adhesion strength and resistance to delamination. Abrasive blasting techniques are commonly employed to increase surface roughness and strengthen the coating-substrate bond3.

Adhesive failure leading to delamination in anti-corrosion coating systems compromises structural integrity by creating thin gaps that allow the ingress of corrosive agents like water. This study investigates the capability of terahertz pulsed imaging to detect air gaps thinner than a THz system’s minimum resolvable thickness by measuring apparent thickness changes in overlaying layers.

The minimum resolvable thickness in terahertz pulsed imaging, referred to as the axial resolution, is determined by the system’s bandwidth. To test this approach, THz measurements were conducted on a 2 mm thick quartz window positioned above a metal substrate with an intervening 19 μm air gap.

An increase in the apparent thickness of the quartz window was observed, consistent with theoretical expectations, despite the air gap being undetectable as a distinct reflection. This analysis was extended to multi-layered paint systems consisting of top, mid, and base coatings on steel plates. Cyclic ageing induced a delamination layer between the metal substrate and base coating, estimated to be 10 μm by scanning electron microscopy.

Terahertz pulsed imaging analysis showed a corresponding 9.9–13.1 μm increase in the apparent base coating thickness, consistent with the quartz window results. These findings demonstrate that terahertz pulsed imaging offers a non-destructive method for identifying sub-resolution air gaps, enabling early-stage detection of delamination in protective coatings.

Read the full article at Nature.com.