Inhibition of corrosion of copper in nitric acid solution by four amino acids

Inhibition of corrosion of copper in 1M HNO 3 solution by four amino acids, proline (Pro), phenylalanine (Phe), tyrosine (Tyr), and tryptophan (Try), has been studied by use of gravimetric and electrochemical polarization measurements. The results obtained the from two different techniques are comparable, and show that Tyr and Try act as good inhibitors of corrosion of copper in 1 mol L −1 HNO 3 . Correlation between inhibition efficiency and quantum chemical calculations, performed using semi empirical (AM1 and MNDO) and ab-initio methods, is discussed.