Corrosion Inhibition of Steel Pipelines in Oil Well Formation Water by a New Family of Nonionic Surfactants

A new family of nonionic surfactants was synthesized and evaluated as corrosion inhibitors for steel pipelines in oil well formation water. Polarization data show that the selected surfactants act as mixed-type inhibitors. EIS results show that the change in impedance parameters (Rt and Cdl) with the concentration of the surfactants studied is indicative of the adsorption of surfactant molecules on carbon steel surface, leading to formation of a good protective film. The properties of this film were studied by various surface analysis tools. Finally, the relation between the surface properties of the inhibitor molecules and corrosion inhibition efficiency is discussed.