The effect of sodium benzoate and sodium 4-(phenylamino)benzenesulfonate on the corrosion behavior of low carbon steel

Abstract  The effect of sodium benzoate (SB) and sodium 4-(phenylamino)benzenesulfonate (SPABS) on the corrosion behavior of low carbon steel has been investigated using gravimetric method in the temperature range of 30–80 °C, velocity range of 1.44–2.02 m s⁻¹ and concentration range of 6.94 × 10⁻⁴ to 4.16 × 10⁻³ mol dm⁻³ SB and 3.69 × 10⁻⁴ to 2.06 × 10⁻³ mol dm⁻³ SPABS. Optimization of temperature, fluid velocity, and inhibitors concentration has been made. The obtained results indicate that the inhibition efficiency (w _IE %) at 1.56 m s⁻¹ is not in excess of 81.5% at 4.16 × 10⁻³ mol dm⁻³ SB and 84.4% at 2.06 × 10⁻³ mol dm⁻³ SPABS. The inhibitive performance of these compounds showed an improvement with increasing concentration up to critical values of SB and SPABS; beyond these concentrations no further effectiveness is observed. These inhibitors retard the anodic dissolution of low carbon steel by protective layer bonding on the metal surface. The adsorption of SB and SPABS on the low carbon steel surface was found to obey the Freundlich isotherm model. The FT-IR spectroscopy was used to analyze the surface adsorbed film. Graphical abstract  Low carbon steel corrosion in presence of sodium benzoate and sodium 4-(phenylamino)benzenesulfonate has been investigated. The adsorption mechanism obeyed Freundlich isotherm model. FT-IR was used to analyze the adsorbed film