Experimental and Computational Studies of a Novel Metal Oxide Nanoparticle/Conducting Polymer Nanocomposite (TiO₂/PVP) as a Corrosion Inhibitor on Low-Carbon Steel in Diprotic Acidic Medium

Abstract

The titanium dioxide/poly­(vinylpyrrolidone) (TiO2/PVP) nanocomposite was prepared by in situ polymerization using different concentrations of poly­(vinylpyrrolidone). The titanium dioxide nanoparticles were synthesized by a co-precipitation method using titanium tetraisopropoxide (TTIP) and ethanol (C2H5OH). The particle size of the synthesized TiO2 nanoparticles and TiO2/PVP nanocomposite was determined through the X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique, and ultraviolet–visible (UV–vis) and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive X-ray (SEM/EDAX) were used to characterize the synthesized nanoparticles (NPs) and nanocomposite (NC). The corrosion inhibition of low-carbon steel in 0.5 N sulfuric acid (H2SO4) by titanium dioxide nanoparticles, poly­(vinylpyrrolidone), and their nanocomposite was investigated by gravimetric and electrochemical methods. According to the results of potentiodynamic polarization curves and alternative current (AC) impedance analysis, all inhibitors followed mixed-type inhibition and formed a monolayer on the surface. The gravimetric study demonstrated that all the investigated inhibitors followed Langmuir monolayer adsorption. Experimental data from atomic force microscopy (AFM) and quantum chemical analysis also showed that the protective film developed by the prepared nanocomposite exhibited excellent corrosion resistance that was superior to that of other microconstituents.

Stable zinc anode by regulating the solvated shell and electrode–electrolyte interface with a sodium tartrate additive

“…2b, the corrosion current decreases from 1.176 mV to 0.920 mV and then increases to 1.108 mV with the existence of STA in the ZnSO 4 electrolyte, confirming that the lower corrosion current alleviates the corrosion issue and avoids the formation of parasitic by-products. 53 In addition, the adsorption effect of STA on Zn was revealed via differential capacitance measurement, which directly affects the stability between the electrode and electrolyte interface, thus regulating the plating/stripping behavior. 54,55 As shown in Fig.…”