Sustainable Development of Palm Oil: Synthesis and Electrochemical Performance of Corrosion Inhibitors

Palm oil production is among the highest worldwide, and it has been mainly used in the food industry and other commodities. Currently, a lot of palm oil production has been destined for the synthesis of biodiesel; however, its use in applications other than the food industry has been questioned. Thereby for a sustainable development, in this paper the use of palm oil of low quality for corrosion inhibitors synthesis is proposed. The performance of the synthesized inhibitors was evaluated by using electrochemical techniques such as open circuit potential measurements, linear polarization resistance and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The results indicate that the fatty amides from palm oil are excellent corrosion inhibitors with protection efficiencies greater than 98%. Fatty amides molecules act as cathodic inhibitors decreasing the anodic dissolution of iron. When fatty amides are added, a rapid decrease in the corrosion rate occurs due to the rapid formation of a molecular film onto carbon steel surface. During the adsorption process of the inhibitor a self-organization of the hydrocarbon chains takes place forming a tightly packed hydrophobic film. These results demonstrate that the use of palm oil for the production of green inhibitors promises to be an excellent alternative for a sustainable use of the palm oil production.