A study on the anti-corrosion mechanism of the eco-friendly inhibitor Ribavirin on Q235 steel in an acidic chloride environment

Developing efficient and eco-friendly corrosion inhibitors to replace traditional toxic and harmful ones is necessary for protecting the ecological environment. Herein, we have developed an eco-friendly drug corrosion inhibitor, Ribavirin (RBVR), which could effectively inhibit Q235 steel corrosion in 1 M HCl solution. EIS results showed that RBVR slowed down the corrosion rate of steel, and η could reach up to 97.7 % when the concentration of RBVR was only 10 mM. The potentiodynamic polarization curve results indicated that RBVR was a modest mixed-type corrosion inhibitor that could inhibit steel anodic and cathodic reactions. The adsorption isotherm and theoretical calculations revealed that the adsorption of RBVR on the steel surface was in the form of parallel adsorption, which maximized the protection of steel. The adsorption of RBVR molecules on the steel was mainly based on the N and O heteroatoms as the active adsorption centers. A monolayer protective film was formed on the steel surface, which retarded the dissolution of active sites. This work will provide a theoretical basis for developing novel, efficient, eco-friendly organic inhibitors and promoting their industrial application.