Anticorrosion Properties of Some Nonionic Surfactants on Carbon Steel in 1 M HCl Environment

The corrosion inhibition behavior in the presence of some surfactants in 1 M HCl medium was examined by mass loss, AC impedance spectroscopy (EIS), potentiodynamic polarization, electrochemical frequency modulation, and surface (scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy) techniques. The C-steel protection rates increased with the increasing amount of surfactant to the 1 M H system and decreases with the increasing temperature of 1 M HCl solution. The adsorption of surfactants on the C-steel surface in HCl follows the Langmuir adsorption mechanism. Arrhenius and transition state equations were applied for the determination of activation parameters. Tafel curves reflect the mixed inhibition behavior of surfactants on the electrode surface in 1 M HCl system. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) method indicates that the C-steel dissolution in HCl environment was fully hindered by charge-transfer processes.