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Electrochemical monitoring of nickel–aluminium bronze crevice corrosion solutions using boron–doped diamond electrode

Electrochemical monitoring of nickel–aluminium bronze crevice corrosion solutions using boron–doped diamond electrode
Electrochemical monitoring of nickel–aluminium bronze crevice corrosion solutions using boron–doped diamond electrode
This study has demonstrated the capability of electrochemically assessing the metal–ion concentrations generated from the localised corrosion of nickel–aluminium bronzes (NAB). Prior to investigating NAB crevice corrosion, its electrochemical properties were studied at different pHs and chloride concentrations. At solution pHs higher than 4 NAB exhibited a corrosion behaviour similar to that of unalloyed copper and its oxidation was controlled by the dissolution of the copper–rich ?–phase. However, as the pH was decreased below 4 the corrosion mechanism changed and the other ?–phases rich in aluminium, iron and nickel underwent preferential oxidation. The NAB corrosion performance was also investigated in the presence of benzotriazole (inhibitor) by using potentiodynamic polarisation. The excellent corrosion properties showed by NAB when exposed to neutral benzotriazole solution made the studied inhibitor a promising candidate for limiting crevice corrosion. With knowledge of the NAB corrosion behaviour and the relatively high copper– and nickel–ion extents present within the crevice corrosion solutions, a study related to their electrochemical behaviour and detection was undertaken using a boron–doped diamond (BDD) electrode at different pHs and chloride levels in order to establish viable electrochemical protocols for effectively assess these concentrations. Before investigating the copper and nickel electrochemical behaviours on BDD electrode, the diamond substrate was studied using a number of different techniques such as potentiodynamic polarisation, cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Results highlighted its excellent performance having a wide potential window (ca. 3 V) and a low capacitive current (20 ?F cm–2 in 0.5 M H2SO4) available for electroanalysis purposes. Finally, the NAB crevice corrosion was monitored using a BDD microelectrode array. The employed setup created an artificial crevice and accommodated the BDD microelectrode array for in situ and a real–time monitoring. The electrochemical response showed the only presence of copper(I) during the investigated time, whose concentration increased within the first two hundred hours to a level of ca. 0.4 mM and then remained stable for the following hundred hours. No copper(II), or other metal–ions, were determined in the crevice solutions, thus suggesting that within the investigated time the copper–rich ?–phase dominated the NAB corrosion behaviour. Furthermore, results also indicated (ii) the low dissolved oxygen concentration within the crevice (since it promotes the oxidation of copper(I) to copper(II)) and (ii) that the local pH did not decreased below 4, where the NAB corrosion is controlled by the selective dissolution of the aluminium–, iron– and nickel–rich ?–phases.
Neodo, Stefano
5d5dabb5-be7e-4ba6-b05c-6b192f4639a0
Neodo, Stefano
5d5dabb5-be7e-4ba6-b05c-6b192f4639a0
Wharton, J.A.
965a38fd-d2bc-4a19-a08c-2d4e036aa96b

Neodo, Stefano (2013) Electrochemical monitoring of nickel–aluminium bronze crevice corrosion solutions using boron–doped diamond electrode. University of Southampton, Faculty of Engineering and the Environment, Doctoral Thesis, 207pp.

Record type: Thesis (Doctoral)

Abstract

This study has demonstrated the capability of electrochemically assessing the metal–ion concentrations generated from the localised corrosion of nickel–aluminium bronzes (NAB). Prior to investigating NAB crevice corrosion, its electrochemical properties were studied at different pHs and chloride concentrations. At solution pHs higher than 4 NAB exhibited a corrosion behaviour similar to that of unalloyed copper and its oxidation was controlled by the dissolution of the copper–rich ?–phase. However, as the pH was decreased below 4 the corrosion mechanism changed and the other ?–phases rich in aluminium, iron and nickel underwent preferential oxidation. The NAB corrosion performance was also investigated in the presence of benzotriazole (inhibitor) by using potentiodynamic polarisation. The excellent corrosion properties showed by NAB when exposed to neutral benzotriazole solution made the studied inhibitor a promising candidate for limiting crevice corrosion. With knowledge of the NAB corrosion behaviour and the relatively high copper– and nickel–ion extents present within the crevice corrosion solutions, a study related to their electrochemical behaviour and detection was undertaken using a boron–doped diamond (BDD) electrode at different pHs and chloride levels in order to establish viable electrochemical protocols for effectively assess these concentrations. Before investigating the copper and nickel electrochemical behaviours on BDD electrode, the diamond substrate was studied using a number of different techniques such as potentiodynamic polarisation, cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Results highlighted its excellent performance having a wide potential window (ca. 3 V) and a low capacitive current (20 ?F cm–2 in 0.5 M H2SO4) available for electroanalysis purposes. Finally, the NAB crevice corrosion was monitored using a BDD microelectrode array. The employed setup created an artificial crevice and accommodated the BDD microelectrode array for in situ and a real–time monitoring. The electrochemical response showed the only presence of copper(I) during the investigated time, whose concentration increased within the first two hundred hours to a level of ca. 0.4 mM and then remained stable for the following hundred hours. No copper(II), or other metal–ions, were determined in the crevice solutions, thus suggesting that within the investigated time the copper–rich ?–phase dominated the NAB corrosion behaviour. Furthermore, results also indicated (ii) the low dissolved oxygen concentration within the crevice (since it promotes the oxidation of copper(I) to copper(II)) and (ii) that the local pH did not decreased below 4, where the NAB corrosion is controlled by the selective dissolution of the aluminium–, iron– and nickel–rich ?–phases.

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Published date: October 2013
Organisations: University of Southampton, Faculty of Engineering and the Environment

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 355881
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/355881
PURE UUID: b8c5722f-3c82-4b2e-92e2-3b0d36572d1c
ORCID for J.A. Wharton: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-3439-017X

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 18 Nov 2013 13:25
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 02:58

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Contributors

Author: Stefano Neodo
Thesis advisor: J.A. Wharton ORCID iD

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