Electrochemical behavior of stainless steel in aerated NaCl solutions by electrochemical impedance and rotating disk electrode methods

Electrochemical behavior of stainless steel in 0.5 M NaCl solutions is studied. It is shown that, for this steel, under a considerable cathodic polarization of electrode, the oxygen electroreduction proceeds via a four-electron mechanism. The corrosion current is estimated. From the impedance spectra, elements of an equivalent circuit that describes the electrode behavior under the ac conditions are calculated. A mechanism of the steel passivation in the electrolyte is proposed.