Infiltration‐Induced Assembly of Nacre‐Like Coatings for Multifunctional Protection of Porous Substrates

Abstract

ABSTRACT Concrete, inherently porous and prone to microcracking, is susceptible to the ingress and diffusion of aggressive external agents. Traditional protective coatings are often constrained by inadequate interfacial adhesion and suboptimal barrier performance, rendering them ineffective on such porous substrates. Based on the pore architecture of the substrate, a nacre‐like protective coating was fabricated via a solvent‐driven infiltration strategy, which triggered the self‐assembly and orderly alignment of two‐dimensional sheet‐like fillers. By tailoring the cross‐linking reactions among reactive solvents, resins, and curing agents, an appropriate viscosity for infiltration and self‐assembly, sufficient wettability for interfacial bonding, and a robust barrier for substrate protection can be simultaneously achieved. The resulting coatings demonstrated an adhesion strength of 10.07 MPa on the concrete surface and provided excellent corrosion protection. This study offers a distinct understanding of the self‐assembly mechanism of sheet‐like fillers and establishes a foundation for designing durable bio‐inspired protective coatings for porous materials.