Corrosion and corrosion inhibition characteristics of bulk nanocrystalline ingot iron in sulphuric acid

The corrosion and corrosion inhibition of bulk nanocrystalline ingot iron (BNII) fabricated from conventional polycrystalline ingot iron (CPII) by severe rolling was studied in 0.5 M H₂SO₄ solution using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and potentiodynamic polarization techniques. The results indicate that BNII was more susceptible to corrosion in the acidic environment essentially because of an increase in the kinetics of the anodic reaction. An amino acid cysteine (cys) was employed as a corrosion inhibitor at concentrations of 0.001 and 0.005 M. Tests in inhibited solutions revealed that cys reduced the corrosion rates of both metal specimens by different mechanisms. For CPII cys inhibited the cathodic reaction but had a stimulating effect on the anodic process at low concentration and a trivial effect at higher concentration. For BNII, cys inhibited both the cathodic and the anodic reactions, although the former effect was more pronounced. Iodide ions improved the inhibitive effect of cys without altering the inhibition mechanism.